Resolve to Help the Birds in 2024!

Photo: Tufted Titmouse, Jocelyn Anderson/Audubon Photography Awards

Connie Ericson

New year’s resolutions about more exercise and a better diet are traditional for this time of year, because those actions can help us live better, happier lives. But another way to improve your quality of life is by helping the birds. If the pandemic taught us nothing else, it is that spending time in the natural environment is healthy for both our bodies and our minds. So, let’s resolve to help our local wildlife in 2024. Consider undertaking either or both of these home improvement projects in the coming year:

• switching outdoor lighting fixtures to comply with dark sky guidelines

• modifying windows to protect from bird strikes

There’s some work involved, and at least some moderate costs, but both can help our local wildlife.

Outdoor Lights

I have to confess that I took steps to change out my outdoor lighting fixtures (one on the front porch and one in the back), not out of a sense of mission and virtue, but because the fixture in the back yard stopped working. I kept yellow bug lights in both fixtures for many years, but that satisfies only one of the five basic principles for responsible outdoor lighting:

1. Do your lights have a clear purpose? 

2. Is the light directed to where it is needed and not at the sky or a neighbor’s property? 

3. Are the lights generating more light than you really need, or would a lower-wattage bulb or a dimmer serve the needed purpose? 

4. Are your lights on all night long or would timers or sensors limit unnecessary light?

5. Are you using warmer colored lighting where possible?

Both of my fixtures are security lights that allow me to check who is at the door, and I choose to keep them on all night. The old fixtures had sensors so they came on only at dusk; however, neither was adequately shielded to direct light downward only to the porch. So, I began my hunt. I wanted lights that were shielded and designed to switch on and off from light sensors. But I also wanted the lights to dim or brighten, relying on a motion sensor. I found fixtures to order through a big-box building supply only after MANY internet searches. I have since learned that DarkSky International certifies light fixtures. You can search for compliant fixtures for various uses on its website. It would have sped up my process to use that website, but I did get the job done!

The total cost for the fixtures and the dimmable, yellow LED bulbs was around $200. But, if you’re not yet ready to invest in new fixtures, check your outdoor lights to see if some of them can be eliminated (or just turned off). Switch out bright bulbs for yellow bug lights, and consider whether you can modify them with motion detectors so they are not on all the time. One other action I am taking, although this is a gradual process, is installing room-darkening shades, blinds, or curtains on the windows to reduce light spill at night. I haven’t done them all, but I can already see a difference when I step outside at night. 

Windows

Over the years I noticed that birds flew into some of my windows, particularly the windows off the back patio where I had some bird feeders, and the two large picture windows on the front of my house. Although taller buildings may present some higher risks for bird strikes (Threats to Birds: Collisions, Fish & Wildlife Service), there are a lot more low-profile structures (like my two-story house) than tall buildings, and they both can cause bird deaths. So, I decided I needed to take action.

What I learned is that I had to make my windows visible to the birds, and that meant creating an image on the outside of the windows. Indoor window coverings, or decals applied to windows indoors, do not eliminate the danger: birds can be confused by reflections, which are not changed by anything covering or marking the window inside. Fortunately, I found there were many ways I could retrofit my windows to make the birds turn back. The American Bird Conservancy website provides links to a variety of do-it-yourself products. ASNV also makes available a how-to video written and filmed by a local Eagle Scout.

I decided to try out several products on my back patio storm door, which I could reach easily and which had experienced bird strikes. I found the easiest product for me to apply was the small, square decals on a two-inch grid. I was able to see the decals from inside the house, but after a day or so I found I did not notice them. I next considered whether to treat some or all of my windows. I knew at least some of the windows where strikes had occurred, but was not certain about the others. I finally decided to treat them all. Because I’m leery of ladders, I had to hire a handyman for the second-story windows, and I decided not to risk having him treat just some of the windows, only to have to arrange for a return visit.

And, I’m happy with the results. I have not needed to replace the decals in the three years since I installed them, and they were not affected by professional window washers. I am only aware of two window strikes since I completed the project, and they occurred at night at a window directly over the previously unshielded front porch light. I’m hopeful that having changed the light fixture changes the risk at that window.

Of course, there many other ways you can improve life for our local birds. Keep your cats indoors, or build them a “catio,” from which they can safely (for the birds) experience the outdoors. There are volunteer projects in local parks for removing invasive plants and planting native plants that nurture local insects and birds. And you can create some bird-friendly habitat in your yard with native plants, natural mulch from fallen leaves, and brush piles that can bring back fireflies. You can advocate for policies that promote conservation at the local, state and national levels. Resolving to take any of those actions in 2024 provides benefits to native wildlife.

Fight Light Pollution to Help Conserve Our Natural Resources

Photo: Hooded Warbler, Adam Brandemihl/Audubon Photography Awards

Tom Blackburn

It’s late summer, and a young Hooded Warbler leaves its breeding grounds in northern Ohio for the first time, headed toward a winter habitat in Cuba. Flying at night with other songbirds, it approaches Reston, Virginia. Many of the flock head for Monticello Park in Alexandria, where they will find food, water, and shelter and can rest before the next leg of their flight. However, some birds, including the Hooded Warbler, are confused by the bright lights of Reston’s newly-constructed, tall buildings and head toward them. Some crash into the buildings and die. The Hooded Warbler escapes this fate, but it flies aimlessly around the lights, squandering the energy that is critical to continue its migration. 

Hooded Warbler, Adam Brandemihl/Audubon Photography Awards

The Hooded Warbler’s plight is not unique. All migrating birds are at risk from excessive outdoor lighting each spring and fall. Some cities, including Washington DC, have established programs such as Lights Out DC, which works to convince building owners and managers to adopt light abatement procedures for the sake of migrating birds. The DC program is patterned after similar programs in Chicago, Toronto, Boston, New York City, and Baltimore, among others. Areas such as Tysons and Reston don’t have any programs to reduce their lighting to protect migrating birds.

The harm caused by excessive lighting is not confined to migrating birds. The Artificial Light at Night (ALAN) database lists hundreds of scientific articles documenting the harm caused by light pollution on people, other mammals, birds, insects, and plants. Humans affected by light pollution suffer from sleep disorders, depression, anxiety, and other problems. Nocturnal birds’ and mammals’ sleep patterns are disrupted, leading to increased stress and lower rates of reproduction. Prey animals are less able to hide from predators when lights are bright at night. Sea turtles turn toward artificial light instead of heading to the sea, causing millions of them to die every year. Nocturnal pollinators are distracted from their normal activities. Even plants are harmed by nighttime lights, which affect when they leaf out and lose their leaves, disrupting photosynthesis. 

Light pollution is a year-round and growing problem. The Globe at Night Community Science Project found that light pollution is doubling every ten years. At the current pace, many people in northern Virginia may not be able to see any stars at all within 20 years. So, take action now to fight light pollution, protecting your health, the health of your community, and our natural resources.

Here’s how you can help reduce the harm caused by light pollution:

• Follow the Five Principles of Responsible Outdoor Lighting developed by DarkSky International and the Illuminating Engineering Society.  Outdoor lights should have a clear purpose; be directed only where needed; be no brighter than necessary; be used only when they are useful; and use warmer color bulbs instead of blue-white bulbs wherever possible. 

• Let your elected representatives know that light pollution and light trespass are harming our environment. Most of northern Virginia’s jurisdictions issued proclamations for International Dark Sky Week last spring. It’s time to follow up with substantive actions to reduce light pollution. For instance, the Town of Vienna, Virginia, is considering a draft Zoning and Subdivision Ordinance that, among other things, establishes standards for outdoor lighting. ASNV submitted comments on the draft, which you can read here. Other jurisdictions should take similar measures.

• Join DarkSky International,  the leading organization working to reduce light pollution. DarkSky International has just announced the formation of its DarkSky NOVA chapter.

• You can learn more about light pollution at Fairfax County Park Authority’s Dark Sky web page. 

• Stay alert for threats to dark skies. Light pollution can take many forms, from excessive lighting for local parks to all-night lighting on bike trails through our local woods. ASNV is working to help curb the harm from lighting our natural spaces. Contact us at advocacy@audubonva.org if you know of a light pollution issue we could address or if you’d like to help us.