Fireworks are important elements of celebrations globally, but little is known about their effects on wildlife. The synchronized and extraordinary use of fireworks on New Year's Eve triggers strong flight responses in birds. We used weather radar and systematic bird counts to quantify how flight responses differed across habitats and corresponding bird communities, and determined the distance-dependence of this relationship. On average, approximately 1000 times as many birds were in flight on New Year's Eve than on other nights. We found that fireworks-related disturbance decreased with distance, most strongly in the first five kilometers, but overall flight activity remained elevated tenfold at distances up to about 10 km. Communities of large-bodied species displayed a stronger response than communities of small-bodied species. Given the pervasive nature of this disturbance, the establishment of large fireworks-free zones or centralizing fireworks within urban centers could help to mitigate their effects on birds. Conservation action should prioritize avian communities with the most disturbance-prone, large-bodied bird species.

中文翻译：

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烟花对鸟类群落的干扰

烟花是全球庆祝活动的重要元素，但人们对其对野生动物的影响知之甚少。除夕夜同步燃放烟花会引发鸟类强烈的飞行反应。我们使用天气雷达和系统鸟类计数来量化不同栖息地和相应鸟类群落之间飞行反应的差异，并确定这种关系的距离依赖性。平均而言，新年前夜飞行的鸟类数量大约是其他夜晚的 1000 倍。我们发现，与烟花相关的干扰随着距离的增加而减少，在前 5 公里内最为明显，但在距离达到约 10 公里时，总体飞行活动仍然增加了十倍。大型物种群落表现出比小型物种群落更强的反应。鉴于这种干扰的普遍性，建立大型无烟花区或在城市中心集中燃放烟花可能有助于减轻其对鸟类的影响。保护行动应优先考虑最容易受到干扰的大型鸟类群落。