Extra, Extra

BrianVan said: ". . .great lie is that hundreds, perhaps thousands of birds would be killed each year by tall buildings with bright exterior displays."



However, it's not only exterior lights, it's also the interior lights. High-rise office buildings with reflective glass are especially reacherous. And it's not anectodal. Tell that to the numerous volunteers who gather at the World Financial Center during migration early in the morning (before the maintenance people clean the streets) to collect the numerous injured and dead migrating birds.

Your conspiracy theory by the Audubon Society doesn't hold up. Anyway, what would be the motive?

I do agree with energy conservation, but for this particular discussion let's just say that in this case I favor art/architecture over conservation, to a degree. Most exterior lighting displays are energy hogs but they're getting more efficient - I can't wait until buildings are constructed with LED skins so that they can be lit with many small lights, energy efficiently, with reduced light pollution.

Continuing...

The Audobon Society's great lie is that hundreds, perhaps thousands of birds would be killed each year by tall buildings with bright exterior displays. The evidence they present is flimsy, and often the facts are made up. There's quite a bit of zealotry going on with their campaign to reduce exterior lighting in cities - if they had their way, everyone living in a high-rise building would shut their curtains at dusk because interior lights are just as "dangerous" for the birds. As low as the 7th floor! And not just during migration season - year round!

But more concerningly, there is no evidence that birds are dying in mass numbers from exterior lighting displays. It's anecdotal on behalf of the Audobon Society and, I believe, a bald-faced lie given the extent of the exaggeration. I'm sure that some birds die, but not in the mass numbers that they claim.

It's particularly loathsome of them to conduct themselves the way they have in their campaign, basically crying "murder!" on anyone who does not cooperate. As it stands, most buildings in NYC dim or turn off their exterior lights at midnight, leaving more than half the night as a reduced danger period.

In reference to the Parachute Jump, that's not even a migration zone for most birds. So this is just dumb.

Jason, here's the explanation:

http://www.terrain.org/articles/15/kousky.htm

Actually I'm not sure how much good will be done by just dimming the parachute jump. It would be considerably more effective if NYC would dim the skyscrapers' lights in Manhattan. Chicago has been doing this and it's saved untold thousands of migrating birds. And--it also saved electricity!

Why is it that none of these articles explains why lights confuse birds and cause them to crash into buildings. Wouldn't light help them see the building and aviod running headlong into it?

Don't complain too much at TW; try having Cablevision... then you'd REALLY weep. When I moved to the Bronx for my current job, my biggest disappointment was losing TW; Cablevision doeesn't carry BBC America. So... sad. :)

omg. Why not just cave in to the Audobon society and rip down the Parachute Jump altogether?? Plus every building over 2 stories tall, if their stats are to be believed. SAVE THE BIRDS! WE'RE KILLING THEM ALL!

(reason for sarcasm: we've done this topic before. Lights on tall buildings do confuse birds, but only in small numbers. Tales of hundreds of dead birds around nighttime illuminated buildings are greatly exaggerated. Concessions like this are unnecessary. People should stop listening to these bird brains.)

Time Warner is garbage.

Verizon DSL and Direct TV is the way to go until Verizon FiOS comes to my area.