The Autumn Blackout
Imagine your entire town switching off all of its streetlights for five straight nights. That is exactly what happens every October on Corvo, a tiny volcanic island in Portugal's Azores archipelago. The island's four hundred human residents intentionally embrace total darkness to create a safe corridor for vulnerable wild neighbors: baby Cory’s shearwaters.
Guiding Lost Fledglings
These seabirds nest in rocky cliffs and take to the skies each autumn. In bird biology, young birds ready to fly are called fledglings. Naturally, these chicks rely on the glow of the moon and stars over the ocean to guide their first journey. Unfortunately, electric streetlights cause severe light pollution, confusing the chicks and luring them away from the open sea. Disoriented birds often crash into pavements or walls where they cannot take off again.
A Village Rescue Squad
By plunging the streets into darkness, locals prevent the seabirds from getting blinded by town lights. Armed with cardboard boxes and handheld flashlights, island families patrol streets and gardens to scoop up grounded chicks. Volunteers keep them cozy overnight and release them by the ocean at sunrise. This community effort has already saved over 30,000 birds from harm.
- More than 30,000 fledgling shearwaters have been rescued so far.
- The island turns off all public lighting during peak flight nights.
- Volunteers inspect alleys and backyards to return chicks safely to the Atlantic.
Would your town ever agree to switch off all the lights for a week to protect local wildlife?
Source: Good News Network
