Lights Out For Migrating Birds In North Carolina
For the last decade, North Carolina has gone lights out to protect migrating birds. Check out the National Audubon Society which protects birds and places throughout the Americas using science, advocacy, education, and boots on the ground. The Lights Out program and all the communities participating across North Carolina are helping to protect migrating birds.
Billions of birds are killed every year during migration.
It’s due to building collisions and bright lights in developed areas that throw off these birds. The solution is simple: turn off excess lighting from September 10 to November 30 at night, and help keep migrating birds safe this fall. These birds travel south at night using the moon and stars to navigate as they fly over urban centers. Unfortunately, bright lights can attract birds, causing them to become disoriented and collide with buildings or collapse from exhaustion. According to the Smithsonian Migratory Birds Center, an estimated 300 million to 1 billion birds are killed each year due to fatal building collisions. As fall migration brings greater bird traffic to our area, here is what you can do to help no matter where you live or work:
- Turn off exterior decorative lighting
- Extinguish pot and flood-lights
- Substitute strobe lighting wherever possible
- Reduce atrium lighting wherever possible
- Reduce interior lighting, especially on higher stories
- Close blinds and curtains
- Down-shield exterior lighting to eliminate horizontal glare and all light directed upward
- Install automatic motion sensors and controls wherever possible
- When converting to new lighting assess the quality and quantity of light needed, avoiding over-lighting with newer, brighter technology
To learn how you can get involved with an active Lights Out program, contact your local Audubon Society chapter.
