Lights Out Northeast Florida

Flyways Map USFWS with LONF logoIt is widely known that many of our feathered friends fly south in the fall and north in the spring. But did you know that 3.5 billion birds make this twice-per-year journey, and that Northeast Florida is the second-largest migration path for birds on the Atlantic Flyway?

We commonly see Canada Geese migrating overhead during the day, but many of our favorite songbirds travel at night under the cover of darkness using the moon and stars as their guiding lights. However, bright artificial lights on buildings draw birds toward these lights and off their natural migration paths. The birds will often aimlessly circle a brightly lit building until they collide with it or collapse from exhaustion. By turning out the lights, we can remove a major source of mortality from bird populations already threatened by predators, bad weather, habitat loss due to development, food availability disruptions due to climate change, and more.

Lights Out Northeast Florida is a partnership between Duval Audubon Society, St. Johns Regional Audubon Society, and Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens, that is part of a growing number of Lights Out initiatives across the country to encourage building managers and homeowners to reduce and turn off artificial lighting at night to ensure birds safe passage during their migration.

Spring migration begins in March and continues through May each year, and fall migration starts in September and runs through early November. In the fall, birds will be readying for their journey back south, so towards the end of the summer it will be time for us to begin preparing to make their journey much safer and uninterrupted.

Here’s what you can do to help!

If you are a homeowner:

  • Cape May Warbler watermark CBW 20190917 7DC 6947Turn off interior lights (or draw blinds) from 11 pm until 6 am during spring and fall migration seasons
  • Switch outdoor floodlights to timed lights or motion sensor lights
  • Direct outdoor lights to point downward, instead of upward into the sky
  • Encourage the businesses you frequent to turn off their lights or reduce the amount of time their lights are on at night
  • Use dBird.org to report dead birds that you find and contribute to a nationwide bird mortality database
  • Sign our Pledge to turn off lights at night during spring and fall migration seasons to help save the lives of migratory birds
  • Download our Bird-Friendly Toolkit to learn more about how to make your home or building bird-safe
  • Share our Facebook and Instagram messages with family and friends, and use the hashtag #LightsOutForBirds

If you are a building owner or manager:

  • Turn off all bright display lighting on top of buildings from 11 pm until 6 am during spring and fall migration seasons
  • Turn off exterior decorative lighting
  • Turn off or dim lobby and atrium lighting
  • Turn off interior lights where possible – especially upper floors (3rd floor and higher)
  • Direct exterior lights to point downward, instead of upward into the sky
  • Switch outdoor floodlights to timed lights or motion sensor lights
  • If employees need to work at night, use task lighting rather than overhead lighting, or, close the blinds or drapes
  • Schedule cleaning crews before 11 pm (and/or put motion sensor light switches in all rooms)
  • Consider keeping light reduction parameters in place year-round to not only save birds but save on energy costs as well
  • Sign our Pledge to reduce nighttime lighting during spring and fall migration seasons to help save the lives of migratory birds

Visit the Lights Out Northeast Florida website to learn more about the initiative or to contact members of our team. If you are interested in helping us save the lives of migrating birds, please complete our online application, and we'll be in touch soon.