Millions of migrating birds are traveling mostly north through Oregon over the next few weeks, and they could use a little help to make their way safely to their breeding grounds.
As these birds fly over cities at night, light pollution can blot out the stars and disrupt their natural navigation systems. They can wind up trapped in the city and either run into buildings or collapse from exhaustion after circling repeatedly.
The Bird Alliance of Oregon’s Lights Out program encourages Oregonians to turn off outdoor lights and close their curtains or blinds to aid birds during their spring and fall migration periods.
The peak migration periods this year are from April 15 to May 19, and from Sept. 19 to Oct. 19.
Wednesday night is a Lights Out “red alert” night, and 3.6 million birds are expected to fly through Oregon skies, according to Colorado State University’s AeroEco Lab. Millions more birds are expected the next two nights, with a projected 3.8 million Thursday and 2 million Friday.
By comparison, about 875,000 birds were estimated to have crossed Oregon skies Tuesday night, according to BirdCast.
