Natural History Wanderings

“Lights Out for Birds” takes place during fall migration which is August 15th through November 30. Golden Gate Audubon, one of the supporters of the efforts describes the importance below:

“Most birds migrate at night and can be drawn off course by tall, lighted structures in their flight path. Scientists aren’t sure why this happens but it may be related to the fact that among many navigational cues, birds use the stars to stay on course. Lighted skyscrapers may simply confuse them. Once in among the lights, birds seem reluctant to fly out. Sometimes they strike buildings or rooftop structures outright. Sometimes they continue flying in circles around the lighted buildings until they drop to the rooftop or the ground from exhaustion. Lights Out programs can dramatically reduce these collisions.Over 250 species migrate through San Francisco Bay, many of them small songbirds such as warblers, thrushes, tanagers and sparrows that migrate at night. Some of these are threatened species whose populations already show steep declines. Ironically, common city birds such as Rock Pigeons and House Sparrows are infrequent collision victims. This may be due to these species’ adaptations for living among buildings.”

To learn more about how to take part go to: Lights Out for Birds | Golden Gate Audubon Society.