Dallas's iconic Reunion Tower goes dark to help migrating birds
DALLAS – If you listen closely and cut out the construction, traffic and chatter of the city, you can hear the billion or so birds that migrate every year.
"We'll see birds like indigo buntings, painted buntings," said the Dallas Zoo's Director of Conservation, Chris Corpus. "We'll see cardinals. You'll see lots of different types of warblers, hummingbirds."
The birds are heading south now, to warmer climates, right through Texas.
"About 250, 300 million of those birds are all passing through Texas," Corpus explained. "Which makes us really vital and important for the health and safety, not just of the birds in Texas, but across North America."
But there are problems when the birds fly across urban centers.
"When birds are migrating, they can get distracted by light sources," Corpus said. "In nature, you really only have the sun and the moon as a light source. So they use that as kind of navigating through the skies."
And in a metroplex like Dallas-Fort Worth, that could be an issue.
"When we have our cities, and all the different lights and light pollution that gets produced," Corpus said. "You might end up distracting those birds and they get drawn into those city areas."
Corpus said the birds will land around the city. When they take off the next morning, they might see those reflections on buildings and crash. That's why Dallas's iconic Reunion Tower is going dark for about a month.
"We want to be part of a bigger thing," said Reunion Tower Marketing Manager Jenna Guinn. "We want to do our part to keep the city safe and to keep our birds safe, and just show that we can be involved in the city and invite other people to do the same with their lights at home and their business lights."
Now through Nov. 17, Reunion Tower's 259 lights will turn on at 50% brightness at 6 p.m., go fully dark at 11 p.m., and turn back on at 50% at 6 a.m. The tower has been doing this for four years now.
"We just want to do our part and keep those migrating birds safe through their journeys," Guinn said. "By dimming our lights, that helps them use their natural abilities to navigate and fly through the skies safely."
To do your part, you can put decals or other items on your windows so the birds know there's glass there.
"It isn't just about protecting a pretty bird," Corpus said. "It's about protecting the ecosystem for all of us, including us humans who live in the ecosystem."
For those who want to get out and help the birds, the Dallas Zoo partners with the Texas Conservation Alliance to survey downtown Dallas every morning for injured birds, and then rehab them to get back on their journey. You can reach out to the Dallas Zoo or Texas Conservation Alliance to learn more and volunteer.