STATE'S PRISON FENCES ELECTROCUTING MANY ANIMALS, OFFICIALS SAY.

Byline: Bhavna Mistry Daily News Staff Writer

Electrified fences at state prisons are giving new meaning to the term ``jailbird.''

While providing a visible and effective deterrent to inmates bent on escape, the 4,000-volt electrified fences are proving deadly for neighborhood birds.

``We've had sparrows and occasional owls die on the fences,'' said Lt. Diane Gonzales, prison spokeswoman. ``Generally by the time we go to the fence and retrieve the animals, they are dead.''

Since the lethal electric fences went up at the state prison in Lancaster in 1994, almost 100 birds and other animals have been killed.

Prison officials keep track of each animal found dead on the wire. By official records, Lancaster's count includes 48 sparrows, nine ravens, seven owls, seven starlings, seven finches, two loggerhead shrikes, a blackbird, a gull, a Say's phoebe, four cats, two ground squirrels, two rabbits, a kangaroo rat and three unidentifiable birds.

None of the birds or animals were endangered or threatened species, but the three barn owls, four burrowing owls and two loggerhead shrikes are all from species listed as sensitive by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service because of declining populations.

Statewide, more than 3,000 birds have died on electrified fences installed over the last four years at 25 prisons.

The death toll prompted the California Department of Fish and Game and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to work with the California Department of Corrections to have netting installed at 13 of the prisons to keep birds off the fences.

Lancaster is not in line to receive the nets.

``Our (deaths) are very, very, very low,'' Gonzales said. ``We're just not in an area with many strikes.''

Officials said that the electrified fence eliminates the need for 24-hour staffing at most prison guard towers, saving the department $40 million annually in staff costs.

``We were looking for ways to improve efficiency, cut costs and maintain security,'' C.A. Terhune, director of the Department of Corrections said in a statement. ``Bird fatalities were an unforeseen, unintended and ultimately unacceptable consequence of the electrified fence project.''

Each time a bird hits a fence, it temporarily disables that portion of the barrier and must be immediately checked out. Each incident is reported to department headquarters in Sacramento through a weekly report.

``We are mandated to check each incident,'' Gonzales said.

Since the netting has been installed at the 13 prisons, bird deaths have dropped by nearly 93 percent statewide, officials said.