Eleanor Randolph, NY Times: Kill the Lights, Not the Birds:
As many as a billion birds die each year in this country as they attempt to follow their seasonal routes — flying north in summer months, south in winter. Because many songbirds, sea birds, and other avians rely on stars to navigate, they grow confused by artificial lights. As a result, these birds die in droves as their ancient routes are interrupted by tall, brightly lit, glass buildings.
We can’t unplug the nation for the birds, of course. But bird lovers in New York can celebrate another conversion in their intrepid campaign to dim non-essential lights during the bird migration seasons. Gov. Andrew Cuomo of New York promised on Monday to begin right away turning off excess lights in state buildings from midnight until dawn as the birds fly across his state. […]
Bright lights once helped define human success, a triumph over the limits and perils of nighttime. Now we know that dimming those lights can mean a different kind of success — the survival of thousands and thousands of migrating birds.
Read entire essay: Kill the Lights, Not the Birds
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