PORTLAND, Maine — As millions of birds make their way to Maine as part of seasonal migration patterns, it's important to reflect on how we can make a difference in their journey.
The task is simple: Turn off your lights.
It may seem too simple of a task, but it makes an immense difference in allowing birds to safely reach their destination.
According to the Kennebunk Conservation Commission (KCC), many birds do not survive migration due to light pollution, which scientists say can confuse birds' navigational instincts.
"The vast majority of bird species tend to migrate at night, using the stars to navigate," the organization said on Facebook. "Man-made lighting interferes with this natural process and causes millions of birds to collide with buildings or confuse them into flying a circular pattern that eventually leads to exhaustion and loss of energy reserves."
The Audubon echoes this sentiment with its "Lights Out" program, a national effort launched to help reduce excess lighting that interrupts the birds.
"Just one building can cause major problems for birds ... within one week in 2017, nearly 400 passerines (warblers, grosbeaks, etc.) were caught in the floodlights of a 32-story Texas skyscraper and killed via window collisions," Audubon states on its website.
According to Audubon, following these simple steps can make a difference within minutes:
- Turn off exterior decorative lighting
- Extinguish potlights and floodlights
- Substitute strobe lighting wherever possible
- Reduce atrium lighting wherever possible
- Turn off interior lighting, especially on higher stories
- Substitute task and area lighting for workers staying late or pull window coverings
- 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 quality and quantity of light needed, avoiding over-lighting with newer, brighter technology
For the month of May, a peak month for bird migration in the Northeast, KCC is advising community members to turn off decorative and bright lights.
For interactive data about bird migration in Maine, click here.
If you discover an injured bird, you can find orphaned wildlife state resources here.