What is the Dim Your Lights Campaign?
A grassroots movement to highlight the effects of light pollution in our hometown and how it is specifically disrupting nighttime pollination.
It's no secret that daytime pollinators are in sharp decline, so nighttime pollinators are doing some of the heavy lifting to compensate.
Many people don't realize that nighttime pollination is a thing. But it's true. Animals and insects like bats, birds, beetles, and moths are hard at work pollinating not only backyard gardens but also larger food crops.
But don't panic...there's something we can do about it.
The number of pollinating insects, including moths, has declined over the past few decades. Artificial nighttime lights particularly contribute to the decline of moths. Moths feed less when they are near artificial lights, which means they visit fewer flowers and spread less pollen. A moth’s life is shortened by less feeding, leaving less time for breeding. When they do breed, females lay fewer eggs, and males, which usually fly longer distances, don’t fly as far. This makes artificial nighttime lights harmful to both moths and the plants they normally visit.
Dimmer lights have less of an effect on moths than bright lights. Some moths are less affected by red and yellow lights than white, green, and blue lights.
Flowering plants depend on pollinators and we depend on flowering plants—for just about everything! We use them for food, fiber, drugs, and to enjoy their looks. Flowering plants are the basis of our fuel, whether from plants that lived long ago or those that lived in our lifetime. They are 80% of all the plants living today, including many trees that have flowers you may not notice. While some flowering plants don’t need pollinators, three-quarters of them would die off without pollinators.
You can help the nighttime pollinators and other wildlife in your neighborhood.
· Dim your nighttime lights
· Use LED bulbs with softer, yellower or redder tones
· Use lighting with motion detection.
You can also help moths by planting food they like. Some of the many flowering plants moths like are listed below.
Flowers Moths Like
Evening primrose
Flowering tobacco
Butterfly bush
Honeysuckle
Gentian
Salvia
Four O’clock
Bee Balm
Impatiens
Moonflower
Petunia
Rose
Trees Moths Like
Hickory
Oak
Maple
Birch
Sumac
Willow
Apple
Plum
Cherry
Sweetgum
Dogwood
Sweet Bay
Talk to your neighbors, business associations, and city council about saving electricity while helping the moths:
· Use LEDs with softer, yellower, or redder tones and reduce the hours they are on.
· Use shields on streetlamps to direct light downward, keeping it below the horizontal.
· Use motion sensors to brighten security lights when needed.
Head over to the Author's page, fill out the form, and let's work together.
Copyright © 2023 L. Charleigh Collins - All Rights Reserved.
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