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Lights Out Across the Country
March 08, 2023 —
Audubon helps protect birds during migration, one switched-off light at a time.
Cities, Towns, and Parks
Transforming our communities into places where birds flourish.
The Threat
Over the past century, urbanization has taken, fragmented, and transformed ecologically productive land with sterile lawns and exotic ornamental plants. We’ve introduced walls of glass, toxic pesticides, and domestic predators. The human-dominated landscape no longer supports functioning ecosystems or provides healthy places for birds.
The Solution
Audubon’s Bird-friendly Communities strives to provide food, shelter, safe passage, and places for birds to raise their young, through our Plants for Birds and Bird-friendly Buildings programs. As we work to create healthy habitats, we also work to ensure safe spaces for our feathered friends. Check out some bird-friendly yard tips here and read on to learn more.
Plants for Birds
By simply choosing native plants for our yards and public spaces, we can restore vital habitats for birds in our communities and help them adapt and survive in the face of climate change. Audubon’s Plants for Birds program is designed to enable anyone to have a positive impact by planting for birds, right where they live.
Bring more birds to your home with native plants! Visit the native plants database to create a customized list of plants native to your area, get connected to your local Audubon and native plant nurseries, and help us get 1 million plants in the ground for birds.
Bird-friendly Buildings
Learn about what Audubon chapters, centers and programs across the country are doing to make buildings safer for birds, both day and night, as we consider the hazards that artificial light at night and glass pose.
See what we're doing
Bird-Friendly Community News
Winter Is the Time to Sow Native Seeds
December 15, 2022 —
Growing bird-friendly plants from seed is a rewarding way to do your part.
Proclamations, Resolutions, and Ordinances
Protecting birds and providing them with abundant habitat and safe passage is achievable with PROs – Proclamation, Resolutions and Ordinances. Connect with your local Audubon chapter, center, or sanctuary, to learn more about PROs for native plants and bird-friendly buildings or reach out to bfc@audubon.org.
Our Team
Marlene Pantin
Partnerships Manager, Plants for Birds
Connie Sanchez
Bird-friendly Buildings Program Manager
New Haven’s First Native Plant Nursery Sprouts with Audubon in Action Grant
Even amidst the pandemic, Menunkatuck Audubon Society and its partners found a way to establish New Haven’s first native plant nursery.
Our Work in Communities
How One Neighborhood Saved Millions of Gallons of Water With Native Plants
By installing water-saving appliances and less thirsty native plants, this Colorado community saved 15 million gallons of water in just one year.
Philadelphia Darkens Its Skyline to Protect Migrating Birds
Spurred by a mass collision event, Audubon chapters and partners lead a Lights Out program during spring and fall migration.
From Goats to Grandparents: How One Audubon Chapter Is Making a More Bird-Friendly Community
Whether it's renting goats to clear out invasive plants or making a new assisted-living facility greener, Huntington-Oyster Bay Audubon is making a difference.
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