Light at night can keep us awake. To help us #sleep better, most smartphones now have a ‘night mode’, which makes the screen look amber.

But what about animals sleeping outside? Could amber lighting improve their sleep?

We tested this idea in pigeons. #SCBMelb20 1/5

Why #pigeons? Because we know a lot about pigeon sleep. They’re (mostly) easy birds to work with!

We kept pigeons in aviaries at @latrobe, recorded their sleep over multiple nights, and used LED lights to mimic urban lighting levels.

https://twitter.com/AnneAulsebrook/status/798292733664186368 #SCBMelb20 2/5

Light at night disrupted EVERY aspect of sleep we measured.

When lights were on at night, pigeons slept 4 hours less. They also slept less intensely and woke more often.

Pigeons recovered some sleep during the day, but not all of it...

Image: @The_Pigeon
#SCBMelb20 3/5

Was amber lighting better for pigeon sleep? I was hoping it would be. It wasn't.

The effects of white and amber light at night on pigeon sleep were extremely similar.

Full results now in @CurrentBiology: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2020.06.085

Pigeon illustration: @JGMussoi
#SCBMelb20 4/5

So changing the colour of our lights might not help pigeons sleep. Instead, we need to reduce #lightpollution – here's how: https://theconversation.com/turn-off-the-porch-light-6-easy-ways-to-stop-light-pollution-from-harming-our-wildlife-132595

But that's just pigeons. What about a native bird species? I'll let @beardedbirder explain Part 2 of this study! #SCBMelb20 5/5

Big thanks to my PhD supervisors John Lesku, @Theresabemused & Raoul Mulder and co-authors @beardedbirder @johnsson_d @MichelleLHall6 & Alexei Vyssotski. Thanks also to @ElizaKThompson who watched lots of boring pigeon videos for me!

Image: Daniel Ruyter / Unsplash

Here's @beardedbirder's thread (via @AnimaliaPodcast) about the #AustralianMagpie component of this study! https://twitter.com/AnimaliaPodcast/status/1289030673307545605