The Tacoronte City Council has launched a campaign for the protection of shearwaters on their first flight, in which they urge the residents of the municipality to turn off the exterior lights of their homes between the months of October and November, the most vulnerable period for these birds.
The Department of the Environment has initiated this plan, which will run until the middle of next month, with the aim of helping these species that should go to the sea “but many of them fly inland, since there is a lot of artificial lighting and they they get confused, exposing themselves to predators or being easily run over”, explained Carmela Díaz, head of the area, through a statement.
This action is in line with the plan launched each year by the SEO Birdlife organization to help many of these birds that fall to the ground due to the disorienting effect produced by artificial light.
Beyond this request to the neighbors, Díaz has also indicated that the exterior lighting of public buildings will also be turned off from the town hall.
“Although we are not the municipality where the most shearwaters fall, since the highest incidence is in tourist areas, we have very important nesting areas on our cliffs and hence the sensitivity that we ask for with the campaign to turn off homes”, added the councilor .
Parallel to this campaign, on November 4, SEO Birdlife will give a talk about the life of these birds and the problems they suffer due to human action on the territory they inhabit, a conference that will be repeated in different educational centers.
