Journal article
White and Amber Light at Night Disrupt Sleep Physiology in Birds
Anne E Aulsebrook, Farley Connelly, Robin D Johnsson, Theresa M Jones, Raoul A Mulder, Michelle L Hall, Alexei L Vyssotski, John A Lesku
Current Biology | CELL PRESS | Published : 2020
Abstract
Artificial light at night can disrupt sleep in humans [1-4] and other animals [5-10]. A key mechanism for light to affect sleep is via non-visual photoreceptors that are most sensitive to short-wavelength (blue) light [11]. To minimize effects of artificial light on sleep, many electronic devices shift from white (blue-rich) to amber (blue-reduced) light in the evening. Switching outdoor lighting from white to amber might also benefit wildlife [12]. However, whether these two colors of light affect sleep similarly in different animals remains poorly understood. Here we show, by measuring brain activity, that both white and amber lighting disrupt sleep in birds but that the magnitude of these..
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Awarded by Australian Research Council
Awarded by Hermon Slade Foundation
Funding Acknowledgements
We thank Graham Hepworth and Cameron Patrick from the Melbourne Statistical Consulting Platform for providing statistical advice, Eliza Thompson for helping to assess eye state from videos, and Advanced Lighting Technologies for providing streetlights for the pigeon study. We are also grateful to Shaun Blackburn, Alicia Dimovski, Danielle Eastick, Juliane Gaviraghi Mussoi, Rowan Jacques-Hamilton, Shauni Omond, Fred Rainsford, Emily Richardson, Isobel Taylor, Lauren Tworkowski, Timon van Asten, Erika Zaid, and staff from the La Trobe Animal Research and Teaching Facility for their assistance during this project. This research was funded by the Australian Research Council (DP170101003; awarded to J.A.L.), Hermon Slade Foundation (HSF-14/4; awarded to T.M.J.), and Holsworth Wildlife Research Endowment (Equity Trustees Charitable Foundation and the Ecological Society of Australia; awarded to A.E.A. and F.C.).