Litomyšl will cover the mirrored doors in the park to prevent bird collisions

photo: Deník/Iveta Nádvorníková

Litomyšl - A reflective structure called The Door, located in a park in Litomyšl in the Svitavy region, will be covered with UV stickers to prevent birds from potentially colliding with it. The city coordinated this with ornithologists, said Mayor Daniel Brýdl (Generace 89) to ČTK. The installation was designed by Dutch architect Winy Maas. This is his first project in the Czech Republic.

The Door is situated on a hill in the Zdeněk Kopal Park. It is made of mirrored dibond panels measuring ten by four meters, with a passage in the middle. The mirrors reflect the surrounding landscape and the city panorama. On social media, people criticized the possibility that the mirrors could confuse birds and lead to collisions.

"The mirrors are tilted five degrees forward. When someone approaches, they see greenery, not the sky. Even so, we are ready to apply UV stickers there; the same ones are already on the museum. This is what we agreed upon with the ornithologists,” Brýdl said.

The museum is located next to the Piarist Church. One side is glass, with mature trees nearby. "The stickers on the museum work; they're small circles. Quite a few birds collided with the glass. Then it stopped,” the mayor said. According to him, the city does not need to rush to acquire UV stickers for the mirrored door. "We are not under pressure; the birds are not in danger right now. The birds have flown to warmer regions, and the corn around is cut,” added Brýdl.

Maas is a world-renowned architect, and Litomyšl values having his work in a public space, Brýdl concluded.