For the 2nd year, LIGHTS OUT OKLAHOMA campaign calls on individuals, businesses to turn off non-essential lights at night to help birds safely migrate through Oklahoma during the spring and fall seasons.
With the simple flip of a switch, Oklahomans can take conservation action to help protect wild birds.
As a partner of the Oklahoma Animal Coalition, the Oklahoma City Zoo and Botanical Garden, is proud to continue its support of LIGHTS OUT OKLAHOMA, a communications campaign aimed at raising awareness for migratory birds and the impact light pollution has on their populations. Oklahoma is part of the central flyway with hundreds of species of birds making their way from, through, or to the state depending on the species and their migration starting point.
“Seeing birds migrate across Oklahoma each spring and fall is a familiar sight, but many people don’t realize the challenges birds face at night,” said Dr. Rebecca Snyder, OKC Zoo’s Chief Mission Programs Officer. “As light pollution increases throughout our cities, towns, and neighborhoods, it’s significantly impacting birds. Their flight patterns are being disrupted, causing birds to fly off course and have more collisions with buildings and power lines.”
Individuals and businesses are encouraged to support LIGHTS OUT OKLAHOMA by turning off or dimming non-essential lights at night within and around their homes and work spaces. The most effective time for turning lights out is between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m. during the peak spring migration season, April 15 through May 31, 2026.
“Taking action to help birds through this project has dual benefits for us and birds,” added Dr. Snyder. “By turning off lights, participants will reduce energy use and save money, while helping protect birds—it’s a win, win.”
In February 2026, the journal Science published a new study showing that bird populations in North America are declining at an alarming rate. Research conducted between 1987 and 2021 monitoring the populations of 261 avian species in North America revealed about half showed significant population declines. This significant drop in the number of birds in American skies is referred to as a decline in abundance. This is alarming because it is an indicator of ecosystem collapse, which threatens environmental health for wildlife and humans. Declining bird populations were more prominent in the southern and midwestern states, including Oklahoma, where it’s suspected that rising temperatures and loss of natural habitat to agriculture are strong contributors.
“Although light pollution is not the primary cause for declining bird populations in America, birds can use all the help they can get,” said Dr. Snyder. “Turning unnecessary lights off during peak bird migration is truly beneficial.”
The Oklahoma Animal Coalition, which spearheads the LIGHTS OUT OKLAHOMA public service campaign, is an informal collective of non-profit organizations committed to helping animals and wildlife. Now it its second year, the LIGHTS OUT OKLAHOMA initiative is the group’s first public awareness initiative.
“This campaign helps educate Oklahomans on the dangers to migrating birds as well as how nighttime light pollution interferes with insects’ ability to reproduce and pollinate at night, creating ripple effects that reduce critical food sources for birds and bats which affect crops that support humans, too,” said Inger Giuffrida, founder of the Oklahoma Animal Coalition and Executive Director of WildCare Oklahoma. “Lights at night have the dual effect of causing birds to lose their way and reducing the critical food supplies they need to make their arduous journeys every spring and fall.”
Organizations committed to supporting LIGHTS OUT OKLAHOMA in 2026 include Animal Alliance of Oklahoma, Animal Wellness Action, A Humane World for Animals (formerly HSUS), Jenks High School Birding Club, Kirkpatrick Foundation, Kirkpatrick Policy Group, Martin Nature Park, Oklahoma City Zoo and Botanical Gardens, Oklahoma Humane, Oklahoma Monarch Society, Oklahoma Primate Sanctuary, Oliver & Friends Farm Animal Sanctuary, Prairie Creek Farm, Red Ridge Nature Preserve, Sutton Avian Research Center, Tulsa Audubon, Tulsa Bird Collaborative, Tulsa Zoo, WildCare Oklahoma, and Young Naturalists Club of Oklahoma–a division of Oklahoma Sierra Club.
To learn more about LIGHTS OUT OKLAHOMA visit www.okczoo.org/lightsout.
The Oklahoma City Zoo is committed to bird and habitat conservation locally and globally. In Oklahoma, the Zoo has provided funds and staff support to the George Miksch Sutton Avian Research Center in Bartlesville to complete a new five-year Oklahoma Breeding Bird Atlas. Data from Breeding Bird Surveys is vital and was used in the Science article referenced above to determine population declines. The Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ (AZA) SAFE: Saving Animals From Extinction program for North American Songbirds as well as AZA’s Not a Pet campaign, which educates people about which animals do not make good pets, are also initiatives the OKC Zoo supports to help protect bird species.
Fly out for a morning of fun on Saturday, May 2 as the OKC Zoo celebrates Bird Awareness Day. Guests will enjoy engaging activities, conservation stations, caretaker chats, and more. Activities will take place from 9:30 a.m. to noon in and around the Zoo’s Children’s Zoo presented by Primrose Schools and are free with regular admission.
Located at the crossroads of I-44 and I-35, the OKC Zoo is a proud member of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, the American Alliance of Museums, and Oklahoma City’s Adventure District. Zoo hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily with last entry at 4 p.m. Purchase Zoo admission in advance at okczoo.org/tickets to avoid the entry lines. Stay in the know on all things OKC Zoo on Facebook, Instagram, Linktree, TikTok, and by visiting our blog stories.
Experience the OKC Zoo as only a ZOOfriends member can! With a ZOOfriends membership, enjoy free general admission to the Zoo for 12 months, plus additional benefits and discounts. You will also be supporting the Zoo’s animal family, education programming, and conservation initiatives both locally and globally. Join or renew today at okczoo.org/membership.