ATLANTIC BEACH, Fla. \u2013 The city of Atlantic Beach is asking residents and businesses to dim the night sky to help protect migrating birds this spring.<\/p>\n
The city has declared March 15 through May 15 as \u201cLights Out Atlantic Beach Nights,\u201d encouraging people to switch off non-essential lights from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. so birds can better navigate during migration.<\/p>\n
\u201cLights that really disorientate the birds are the lights that actually directly go up in the sky, so they could be landscape lights,\u201d said Elizabeth Filippelli from the Duval Audubon Society, who is also the vice president of Lights Out Northeast Florida. \u201cAnything that is a white color is also very disorientating for birds.\u201d<\/p>\n
The city of Jacksonville participated in the effort last year, and other local municipalities have also expressed interest in getting involved.<\/p>\n
Atlantic Beach residents are already familiar with artificial lights disorienting sea turtles, as city leaders say the research and similar concepts apply to birds, which can become confused by bright lighting at night.<\/p>\n
\u201cBirds do a lot of things for us that we don\u2019t know,\u201d Filippelli said.<\/p>\n
Steps to take<\/p>\n
Turn off decorative or non-essential outdoor lighting<\/p>\n
Use motion sensors or timers where light is needed<\/p>\n
Close blinds or curtains to reduce indoor light shining outside<\/p>\n