A new showdown between bird lovers and building owners may be brewing. Apparently the Shelburne Hotel in Murray Hill is taking down some vines that are supposedly eroding the building. But the Post reports that neighbors are concerned because American songbirds nest in the vine.
Alberto Acosta said that when workers started to take down the vine (see this picture at the Post), "The birds were in a panic. They were screeching. My children started crying, saying 'They're killing the baby birds!' "
It's against the law to destroy American songbirds nest, but the hotel says no nests have been found and that they will contact the Audubon Society if they find nay. The Audubon's NYC chapter executive director Glenn Phillips says, "I strongly encouraged them not to disturb the vine below the third floor."
Birds and buildings sometimes have an uneasy co-existence - remember red-tailed hawks Pale Male and Lola's ordeal? The NYC Audubon has a hawk cam trained on a red tail hawks' nest in Queens, too.
