Turn Off Those Lights Connecticut, Lots of Birds are Migrating

Hummingbird-Mania 2024 has officially started with the recent arrival of the first Ruby-Throated Hummingbirds of the season. The bigger picture is that it's migration time for millions of birds, and an easy way to help them safely fly over your home is turning off any unnecessary lights.

Lights Out Connecticut is a non-profit, and they've been working tirelessly over the past two years trying to inform us about the dangers that artificial nighttime lighting pose to the millions of migratory birds that fly directly over Connecticut during the Spring and Fall bird migration each year. Today is April 24, 2024, and according to BirdCast, over 312,000 birds flew over New Haven County overnight. Lights Out Connecticut's work led to the State of Connecticut to pass Public Act 23-143 last year, which reduced unnecessary lighting at state-owned buildings. Just recently on March 19, Lights Out Connecticut announced that Greenwich became the state's first Lights Out community by adopting new lighting requirements for most of the buildings in town.

Why are bright lights bad for migrating birds? Bright light can attract and lure birds off course, which can lead them to blindly collide with your patio slider, a powerline, or the flag that stands on top of your city's town hall. What steps can you take to help the birds? Turn off your spotlights, or decorative lighting, it's April and there is no reason for your Christmas lights to still be lit up. Interior lights should be dimmed, especially on the upper floors, or drawing the blinds would be even better.