When we see a flock of birds migrating, we are filled with wonder and a deep sense of continuation. Everything is right with the world. I particularly love to hear geese calling as they wing their way overhead toward the east in Spring here in Hertfordshire, England. These giant birds are full of grace and symmetry, usually flocking together in the form of a V with one leader at the point.
News from the other side of the North Atlantic Ocean from the UK: The state of New York is to turn off non-essential lights in state-run buildings to help birds navigate their migratory routes in spring and autumn.
Apart from the birds who use the Earth's magnetic field some navigate by using landscape features, such as coastline, mountains or even motorways (freeways or highways), other migrating birds are believed to use the sun and stars to navigate. However, they can be disorientated by electric lights, causing them to crash into buildings. The fatal light attraction phenomenon is estimated to kill up to one billion birds a year in the US.
Millions of birds migrate through New York along the Atlantic Flyway route to make their home in New York's forests, lakes and rivers.
Apart from the birds who use the Earth's magnetic field some navigate by using landscape features, such as coastline, mountains or even motorways (freeways or highways), other migrating birds are believed to use the sun and stars to navigate. However, they can be disorientated by electric lights, causing them to crash into buildings. The fatal light attraction phenomenon is estimated to kill up to one billion birds a year in the US.
Millions of birds migrate through New York along the Atlantic Flyway route to make their home in New York's forests, lakes and rivers.
Now those passing over the New York city by night will stand a better chance of making it further north. Bright outdoor lights will be turned off between 23:00 and dawn during peak migration seasons in spring and autumn. Other well-known New York landmarks have already signed up to the National Audubon Society's Lights Out program, including the Rockefeller Center, Chrysler Building and Time Warner Center.
The National Audubon Society already works with other major cities to protect birds from strikes, including Baltimore, Chicago, and San Francisco. Source: BBC.
In the European Union, public opinion favors conservation, via a variety of nature-protection groups.
I love the idea of cities, even countries working together to nature and protect the creatures in our beautiful world, some of which are descended from dinosaurs. Just imagine life without birdsong.
The National Audubon Society already works with other major cities to protect birds from strikes, including Baltimore, Chicago, and San Francisco. Source: BBC.
In the European Union, public opinion favors conservation, via a variety of nature-protection groups.
I love the idea of cities, even countries working together to nature and protect the creatures in our beautiful world, some of which are descended from dinosaurs. Just imagine life without birdsong.
21/09/2005 © Francene Stanley
UNGRASPED MELODY
The sound tickling my brain
Releasing remembered pain
With ungrasped melody there
At the back, under my hair.
Music made by nearby birds
Although by my ears it's heard
It strokes parts contained within
Tweaking inside with a pin.
Ecstasy for all to feel
Not through chemicals, but real
Pay attention and you'll hear
Every birdsong that is near.
So many different notes
All put forth from tiny throats
Composed in alien ways
Seem to burst forth in relays.
Each note strikes a different part
Of my brain and of my heart
The same feeling that's perceived
When huge fireworks are achieved.
The birdsong lulls me to relax
Pushing out all thoughts that tax
Snatches of memory drift
Other patterns of time shift.
When we moved into our home sixteen years ago, I installed two bird boxes either side of the wall facing the front garden. The idea of providing shelter for small English birds appealed to me. Year after year, tiny, secretive birds nested in the boxes. Every now and then, the quick flight of a bird heading above our front windows right now gives me a sigh of satisfaction.
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