Vikings' new stadium is a "death trap" for birds

[RealSNR]

This is really funny to me for some reason. I'm imagining gaggles of Canadian geese flying straight into this thing, dozens at a time. With hilarious cartoon sound effects.

http://www.motherjones.com/blue-marb...kill-lot-birds

The Minnesota Vikings' new football stadium was supposed to be a point of pride for fans. The $1 billion state-of-the-art facility in the heart of downtown Minneapolis is set to be completed in 2016, and will put the crumbling Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome out of its misery. But a number of groups are getting angrier about a darker side to this dream project: The stadium's shiny glass walls, which are almost certain to pose a lethal hazard to migrating birds.

The Mississippi River is just blocks away from the structure, and it's a superhighway for seasonal migration. 250 different species of birds—mostly small songbirds like sparrows and warblers—migrate through Minnesota every year by the hundreds of thousands. When they saw the plans for the new stadium, said Matthew Anderson of Audubon Minnesota, "we realized immediately the potential this had to be a death trap." Migrating birds will get tricked by the stadium's glass walls; thinking they're just more sky, the birds will slam into them at high speeds.

At first, Anderson says, the Vikings organization and the Minnesota Sports Facilities Authority overseeing the project seemed eager to fix the problem. They agreed to lighting restrictions that would make the area safer for birds at nighttime, for one. As for the transparent walls, the fix was relatively cheap: A different kind of glass—with lots of small dots that signal to birds it's a hard surface—would cost just over a million dollars extra. That's one-tenth of one percent of the total cost of the project. Plus, the Vikings had already contracted with the manufacturer of this special glass—a Minnesota company to boot.

But on July 17, Anderson said, the Vikings and MSFA balked, claiming the special glass would make the project too expensive. The improvement had seemed like a PR slam dunk. Now, the Vikings' resistance puts them squarely at odds with a growing trend of eco-friendliness in stadium construction. For instance, several structures constructed in recent years have achieved some degree of LEED certification, including Minneapolis' Target Field, home of MLB's Minnesota Twins.

It's not just Audubon making a stink about the Vikings' decision. Politicians have taken interest in the controversy. Minnesota State Representative Phyllis Kahn (DFL-MN), whose district is adjacent to the site of the new stadium, chairs the state legislature's Legacy Committee, which finances conservation-related projects. She said there's a state law that mandates bird protection measures if a project is financed by state bonds—the new stadium is getting $468 million worth of them. (MSFA officials claim that because the project was approved before the law was passed, they are exempt.) Meanwhile, the Minneapolis City Council passed a resolution on Friday to support the push for bird-safe glass.

As of now, the Vikings haven't budged on the issue, despite the mounting outcry. (The organization did not respond to my requests for comment). Audubon's Anderson told me that if nothing gives, the organization might call on Governor Mark Dayton to step in. Dayton led the push for the new facility, calling it a "people's stadium." "This is the people's stadium, these are the people's birds," Anderson says. "We don't want the people's birds running into the people's stadium. It's gonna be a mess."

[Pepe Silvia]

Birds fly into my window almost every day so this is hilarious.

[KCrockaholic]

Worth it just for that fact alone.

[ping2000]

Vikings Tailgating: Birds fall from the sky right onto your grill.

[mikey23545]

Hopefully they have the Eagles, Cardinals, Falcons, Ravens, and Seahawks scheduled as home games in 2016.

[Just Passin' By]

Independent food supply..... check

[mikey23545]

"Hey lady...on second thought, I think I'll change my order. Those chicken wings look kind of weird...

[anustart]

This is ****ing sick. Innocent birds dying due to a freaking stadium.

[WakkaWakka]

Originally Posted by anustart

This is ****ing sick. Innocent birds dying due to a freaking stadium.

[Demonpenz]

Rats with wings

[Eleazar]

There are numerous skyscrapers just to the north/west of this stadium...

[displacedinMN]

Here is the search I did from the Red Star so you can read the stories.

http://www.startribune.com/search/?s...es=R&y=15&x=18

[Bwana]

Crispy Roasted Goose with Orange Sauce

Piercing the skin of goose helps drain off the large amount of fat and also crisps the skin. Serve with homemade cranberry sauces or chutneys. Pour all the flavorful fat through a fine sieve and freeze for up to four months. Use for browning potatoes.

Ingredients

1 (12 pounds) goose

• 5 navel oranges, each cut in half
• 1 bunch(es) thyme
• 4 bay leaves
• 1/2 teaspoon(s) dried thyme
• 1 1/4 teaspoon(s) salt
• 1/2 teaspoon(s) coarsely ground black pepper
• 3 tablespoon(s) orange-flavored liqueur
• 2 tablespoon(s) cornstarch
• 1/2 cup(s) orange marmalade

---

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Remove giblets and neck from goose; reserve for another use. Trim and discard fat from body cavity and any excess skin. Rinse goose inside and out with cold running water and drain well; pat dry with paper towels. With goose breast side up, lift wings up toward neck, then fold wing tips under back of goose so wings stay in place. Place 6 orange halves, thyme sprigs, and bay leaves in body cavity. Tie legs and tail together with string. Fold neck skin over back. With two-tine fork, prick skin in several places to drain fat during roasting.

Place goose, breast side up, on rack in large roasting pan (17-inch by 11 1/2-inch). In cup, combine dried thyme, 1 teaspoon salt, and pepper; rub mixture over goose. Cover goose and roasting pan with foil. Roast 1 hour 30 minutes; turn oven control to 325 degrees F and roast 2 hours longer.

Meanwhile, in small bowl, from remaining 4 orange halves, squeeze 3/4 cup juice. Stir in 1 tablespoon liqueur, cornstarch, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt; set aside. In cup, mix orange marmalade with remaining 2 tablespoons liqueur.

With spoon or bulb baster, remove as much fat from roasting pan as possible. Remove foil and roast goose 45 minutes longer. Remove goose from oven and turn oven control to 450 degrees F. Brush marmalade mixture over goose. Roast goose until skin is golden brown and crisp, about 10 minutes longer. Transfer goose to warm platter; let stand at least 15 minutes for juices to set for easier carving.

Prepare sauce:

Remove rack from roasting pan. Strain pan drippings through sieve into 8-cup measuring cup or large bowl. Let stand until fat separates from meat juice; skim and reserve fat for another use (there should be about 5 cups fat).

Measure meat juice; if necessary, add enough water to meat juice to equal 1 cup. Return meat juice to pan and add reserved orange-juice mixture. Heat sauce to boiling over medium heat, stirring; boil 1 minute. (Makes about 1 3/4 cups.) Serve sauce with goose. Remove skin before eating, if desired. Makes 10 main-dish servings.

[cmh6476]

Darwinism, survival of the fittest.

[mikey23545]

Originally Posted by cmh6476

Darwinism, survival of the fittest.

So stupid you can't miss something the size of a stadium = future fossil.