Tracy Aviary is promoting an idea that’s for the birds — it’s asking people to take the Lights Out Salt Lake Pledge and agree to help battle light pollution.
According to the aviary, two-thirds of birds that migrate do so at night, and artificial lights cause many of them to “wander off course, get confused … and die in collisions with buildings.”
So to save the birds’ lives, Tracy Aviary is asking people to sign a pledge to turn off all unnecessary lights between 11 p.m.-6 a.m. from March through May and August through October — “peak bird migration times.”
Once you sign on, you can pick up a free yard sign at the aviary — 589 E. 1300 South — and you may be eligible for activity discounts, awards and community recognition.
(You won’t be watched like a hawk, however. Tracy Aviary promises participants’ names won’t be shared with anyone without express written permission.)
If you’re wondering why birds prefer to migrate at night, according to the aviary:
• The night sky is safer and more comfortable.
• Night skies are calmer, with fewer storms.
• Flying is hard work, and cooler temperatures at night make it easier on the birds.
• Hawks and falcons, which eat smaller birds, fly more during the day, so it’s easier to avoid them at night.
