Light pollution and its impact formed the central focus of World Migratory Birds Day 2022, a United Nations supported global campaign designed to raise awareness about migratory birds and the need for international cooperation to protect them. Events around the world carried the theme Commemoration of the Day, urging communities to dim night lighting for the sake of birds. This effort highlighted how nighttime illumination can disrupt avian life and migrate patterns across continents, including North America and Canada. The campaign underscored the urgency of reducing light pollution to safeguard migratory species and their habitats.
UN figures warn that light pollution is rising worldwide. Research indicates that more than 80 percent of people live under a bright sky, a figure that climbs toward 99 percent in Europe and North America. Artificial light on the Earth’s surface grows by at least two percent annually and could accelerate in the near term. The message is clear: natural darkness holds vital value comparable to clean water, air, and soil. The view from the executive secretary of the Convention on Migratory Species of Wild Animals stresses that the aim of World Migratory Birds Day in 2022 was to draw attention to light pollution, its harmful impact on migratory birds, and the need for concrete action by decision makers in Canada, the United States, and beyond.
Experts agree that light pollution poses a major and growing threat to wildlife, including many migratory species. The UN emphasizes that millions of birds are affected by artificial illumination each year.
Disorientation and deadly collisions
Light pollution alters the natural timing of day and night, changing ecosystems and the behaviors of migrating birds. It can disrupt migration routes, foraging habits, and vocal communication.
Migratory birds in flight often struggle under artificial light, particularly on nights with low clouds, fog, rain, or when flying at lower altitudes. Exhaustion and depleted energy reserves increase the risk of harm in lighted areas, including collisions with buildings. Night-active birds, such as ducks, geese, shorebirds, and songbirds, can become disoriented and endangered due to these conditions, according to officials involved in regional wildlife programs.
Seabirds like petrels and shearwaters are drawn to illuminated coastal zones, making them easy prey for predators and cats when they land. The United Nations highlights several strategies to reduce light pollution, including the Light Pollution Guidelines adopted by CMS members in 2020 for sea turtles, seabirds, and migratory shorebirds. The guidelines promote six lighting best practices and call for environmental impact assessments for projects that may increase light pollution.
Environmental assessments should consider primary light sources, potential wildlife impacts, and proximity to key habitats and migration routes, the UN notes.
The importance of the dark sky
CMS is developing new guidelines focusing on migratory birds and bats that will be presented for adoption at the CMS Conference of the Parties. While international momentum continues, many governments, cities, and communities around the world are already taking steps to address light pollution as part of broader environmental programs.
In many North American cities, initiatives such as Lights Out programs and bird-friendly building guidelines aim to shield migratory birds from stray illumination, encouraging property owners and managers to reduce light during key transition periods.
World Migratory Bird Day is viewed as a rallying call for the protection of migratory birds across regions, including North America. The focus on dark skies underscores the importance of reducing light pollution to support bird migrations and ecosystem health.
Spain shows how broad this issue is, with a study led by astrophysicist Alejandro Sánchez de Miguel indicating a substantial rise in artificial light emissions and light pollution from 1992 to 2017, up to 300 percent. The effects are especially severe for nocturnal animals that rely on darkness for survival.
Overall, the message is that reducing light pollution benefits not only birds but diverse wildlife and human communities in North America, including Canada and the United States.
Environmental groups and government agencies continue to stress the value of dark skies and responsible lighting practices as part of ongoing sustainability efforts.
Note: contact avenues previously listed have been removed to maintain a concise, public-friendly overview of the issue and its international scope.