Tuesday, August 4, 2026
Science

Reducing night lights in cities has ecological effects

Artificial light at night (ALAN) can cause plants to open their buds and sprout leaves earlier in the spring. ALAN can also cause trees to delay changing the color of their leaves in the fall. These changes can ripple through ecosystems, affecting pollinators, herbivores and insects that lay eggs on...

Reducing night lights in cities has ecological effects
Image: Phys.org
Artificial light at night (ALAN) can cause plants to open their buds and sprout leaves earlier in the spring. ALAN can also cause trees to delay changing the color of their leaves in the fall. These changes can ripple through ecosystems, affecting pollinators, herbivores and insects that lay eggs on plants. ALAN also disorients many migrating birds and other animals.

Originally published at Phys.org

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