Lights Out: How Turning Off Lights Saves Migrating Birds

Most songbirds migrate at night, navigating by stars and the Earth's magnetic field. Our blaze of artificial light throws them off course — with deadly results. 'Lights Out' is one of the simplest, most effective conservation actions there is.

How light harms migrants

Bright lights, especially from tall buildings, attract and disorient night-migrating birds. They become trapped circling lit structures, exhausting themselves, colliding with glass, or being left vulnerable at dawn in unsuitable habitat. Mass-casualty events at brightly lit buildings have killed hundreds or thousands of birds in a single night.

What Lights Out programs do

Lights Out initiatives — coordinated by Audubon and many cities — ask building owners and residents to turn off or reduce nonessential lighting during peak migration seasons (spring and fall). Cities from Chicago to New York to Dallas have programs, and the results in reduced collisions are measurable.

What you can do at home

• Turn off unnecessary exterior and interior lights at night during migration (roughly March–May and August–November).
• Close blinds and curtains to contain indoor light.
• Use motion sensors, timers, and warm-colored, shielded, downward-facing fixtures instead of all-night floods.
• Spread the word — ask local businesses and building managers to participate.

It helps more than birds

Reducing light pollution also saves energy and money, restores dark skies, and benefits insects and other wildlife. It's a rare conservation action with zero downside.

Time it with migration forecasts

Tools like BirdCast forecast big migration nights, so you can prioritize lights-out on the heaviest nights. Then enjoy the payoff in the morning — log the migrants that made it through safely in Birder AI.