Light-emitting greenhouses affect daily vocalization behavior in birds

Abstract

To date, studies of the effects of artificial light on wildlife have mostly focused on street lighting. However, less attention has been paid to light from greenhouses, which can be sources of substantial light pollution from autumn to early spring. We investigated how daily 4–8 h of nocturnal illumination from a greenhouse influences the time of daily vocalization of forest birds in a non-urban area. Our study revealed that birds exposed to greenhouse lightning start dawn singing and calling earlier and stop dusk vocalization later, especially before the breeding season in the second half of February. The most affected species were the European Robin (entire study period) and Blackbird (early period only), but other species also revealed a significant impact on vocal activity (calls). Our study shows that even short-duration light pollution from greenhouses in a non-urban area in the breeding season can affect bird vocalization behavior.