Kim Adelson
The National Audubon Society, and hence our state chapter, Audubon Washington, has begun what will be a multi-year campaign to help migrating birds avoid window strikes. This is a serious problem, since more than 1 billion birds are killed in the U.S. each year by flying into windows. Most of these strikes occur during the birds’ annual migrations. The birds most affected are some of our most common and beloved species: warblers, sparrows, kinglets, thrushes, and nuthatches.
The majority of birds – even diurnal ones – migrate at night and they are attracted by light from private dwellings as well as skyscrapers and other large buildings. Each of us can help reduce the birds’ risk by adopting one or more of the following strategies:
⦁ Use light at night only if it is necessary
⦁ Direct outdoor lights so that they fall only where they are needed
⦁ Make sure that any outdoor lights point downwards, not up towards the sky
⦁ Use lights that are no brighter than necessary
⦁ Switch to warm-colored lightbulbs (less than 3000 Kelvin) when replacing your current bulbs. (They are less attractive to birds.)
The most critical time to limit outdoor lighting is during migration season. In the spring in Western Washington, migration runs from about April 1st to the end of May. The peak numbers of birds pass through our region from roughly April 18th to May 21st, and so reducing light leakage those days is especially critical. In the fall, the migration season lasts from about September 1st to October 31st, with peak flybys occurring from September 3rd to October 11th.
Common wisdom to the contrary, more birds are killed by striking low buildings, such as private homes, than by hitting skyscrapers. Each of us therefore has a real opportunity to help our treasured avians by taking one or more of the simple steps outlined above. I urge you to do so and to spread the word to your friends and neighbors.
Illustration created by Kim Adelson, using AI
