Living Bird-Friendly Series: Making Our Places & Spaces Safer for Birds

FAIRFIELD, CT — A two-day Living Bird-Friendly series will take place this Friday and Saturday at the Pequot Library in Fairfield to inspire community action on behalf of birds. Free and open to the public, the series will include five different presentations designed to help local residents make their homes and yards more “bird friendly.”

The series, organized by the Fairfield Forestry, Lights Out Connecticut, and the Pequot Library, will provide information and resources about how to live more bird friendly, including by eliminating window collisions, decreasing light pollution, planting native plants and flowers, and following bird-friendly pest control strategies. It will also include opening remarks from Fairfield First Selectman Bill Gerber on April 13 at 10:30 a.m.

Children and families will delight in the Owl and Hawk Encounter: Meet Amazing Nighttime Neighbors on April 13 at 10:30. This activity, featuring live birds, will be led by educators from Connecticut Audubon Society and Fairfield Pollinator Pathway.

Each session will feature a short presentation by experts followed by hands-on learning about the practical aspects of making your home a safe haven where birds can thrive. In the process, individuals will gain a better understanding of the different threats that native birds face in Fairfield and across Connecticut.

"It brings people joy to see bluebirds in their yard or hear a robin sing–or catch a glimpse of a hummingbird or a screech owl, but it's not easy for birds these days. They face so many different perils," said Meredith Barges, co-chair of Lights Out Connecticut, who will be co-leading the first two sessions on reducing window collisions and light pollution. "This series is about giving people the tools and knowledge they need to turn their yards into safe, colorful places where birds can thrive."

Twelve different local advocates and nonprofits will co-present at the series, offering programs for participants of all ages on how to make your home or business safer and more inviting for birds.

According to Pequot Library Adult Programs Manager Charlie McMahon, “Pequot Library is proud to take a leadership role on this important topic by convening area experts who can teach us all about how to best care for our environment and natural world. This series follows International Dark Skies Week (April 2-8), and is planned as part of the library’s ongoing climate and environment crisis initiative. Last year we hosted the ‘Lights Out Panel,’ and this year, we’re thrilled to further that mission.”

The series is devoted to the memory of Flaco, the Eurasian owl in New York City that captured the public's imagination, who died as a result of an avian virus and lethal levels of four different kinds of rat poison from eating poisoned rodents on the city streets. “We aim to use this series to help raise awareness of the threat of rodenticides to our raptor populations,” said Ted Luchsinger, of Fairfield Forestry, who will be co-presenting.

Community partners involved in this series include: Fairfield Forestry Committee, Lights Out Connecticut, DarkSky Connecticut, UrbanScapes Native Plant Nursery, Mow Green, Connecticut Pesticide Reform, Fairfield Pollinator Pathway, Aspetuck Land Trust, Connecticut Audubon Society, and Sustainable Fairfield.

For more information, visit - https://www.pequotlibrary.org/learn/adults/living-bird-friendly-series/

MEDIA CONTACTS

Charlie McMahon, Adult Programs Manager, Pequot Library, mcmahon@pequotlibrary.org
Meredith Barges, Co-Chair, Lights Out CT, meredith.barges@yale.edu
Mary Hogue, Chair, Fairfield Forestry Committee, maryhogue350@ gmail.com

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ABOUT LIGHTS OUT CONNECTICUT: Lights Out Connecticut is a nonprofit project of the Menunkatuck Audubon Society working across Connecticut to pass meaningful nighttime lighting policies and increase public understanding of light pollution's harms for migratory birds and local ecosystems. We organize residents, businesses, and schools to turn off or dim nonessential lights during peak bird migration with our online pledge. For more information, visit www.lightsoutct.org.

ABOUT FAIRFIELD FORESTRY: Appointed by the Town Tree Warden, the Forestry Committee, founded in 2006, is charged with promoting stewardship of Town-owned trees and assisting the Tree Warden with the implementation of the Town’s Community Forest Management Plan. The committee pursues its mission by: providing public events and programs to encourage participation in the Community Forest Management Plan; providing opportunities for the general public to give feedback regarding the Community Forest Management Plan; conducting studies at the direction of the Tree Warden; providing advisory assistance to the Tree Warden; pursuing grants and other sources of funds to advance the Community Forest Management Plan; and encouraging and supporting the participation of residents and neighborhood groups for implementing the Community Forest Management Plan.