The Migration of North American Birds (1935)Lincoln, Frederick Charles
Science
The Migration of North American Birds (1935)
Lincoln, Frederick Charles
Birds -- Migration
The destruction of migratory birds by their striking lighthouses,
light ships, tall bridge piers, monuments, and other obstructions
has been tremendous. Beams of the lanterns at light stations have
a powerful attraction for nocturnal travelers of the air. It may
be likened to the fascination for lights that is shown by many
insects, particularly night-flying moths. The attraction is not so
potent in clear weather, but when the atmosphere is moisture laden,
as in a heavy fog, the rays have a dazzling effect that lures the
birds to their death. They may fly straight up the beam and dash
themselves headlong against the glass, or they may keep fluttering
around the source of the light until exhausted, and then drop
to the rocks or waves below. The fixed, white, stationary light
located 180 feet above sea level at Ponce de Leon Inlet (formerly
Mosquito Inlet), Fla., has caused great destruction of bird life
even though the lens is shielded by wire netting. On one occasion an
observer gathered up a bushel-basketful of warblers, sparrows, and
other small passerine birds that had struck during the night. The
birds apparently beat themselves to death against the wire or fell
exhausted to the concrete pavement below, frequently to be destroyed
there by cats or skunks. Two other lighthouses at the southern end
of Florida, Sombrero Key and Fowey Rocks, have been the cause of
a great number of bird tragedies, while heavy mortality has been
noted also At some of the lights on the Great Lakes and on the coast
of Quebec. It is the fixed white lights that cause such disasters
to birds, as the stations equipped with flashing or red lights do
not present such strong attractions. That it is not a mere case of
geographical location has been demonstrated, for it is observed that
when fixed white lights have been changed to red or flashing lights,
the migrating birds are no longer endangered. At some of the light
stations in England and elsewhere, shelves and perches have been
placed below the lanterns to afford places where birds can rest until
they have overcome their bewilderment.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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