Report from the field: The impact of daylight savings time on birds

Editors Note: This was published on April 1st 2023 and is, of course, a joke. April Fools! Of course birds are NOT effected by humans changing clocks, and as far as I know there is no such “Renowned Naturalist Dr. Robert Dylan

Another year, another report on the devastating effects of daylight savings on the animal kingdom. Like most of our man-made constructs, what started as a good idea for humans has had an impact on the natural world, the effects of which we are barely starting to understand. I sat down with renowned naturalist Dr. Robert Dylan to discuss his research into the impact of the semi-annual changing of the clocks on avian species, and what new insights he was able to record this past daylight savings adjustment in March. 

So Robert, we know that daylight savings is an abrupt shift for humans, but we usually adjust over the course of a few days. Why does it affect animals so much more? 

Great question, the first thing you have to understand is that although you may be a little bit groggy at work after we “spring ahead”, for a lot of birds that loss of an hour can be fatal. Especially during migration, birds need to be very alert when they wake up and be on guard for predators, as well as quickly finding food to fuel their long overnight flights. My research suggests that just by shifting our clocks by a single hour, the loss of sleep and weariness that a migrating bird faces is equivalent to the anxiety of waking up and realizing they have roosted above a fox’s den. 

And how about in fall when we set the clocks back?

Well as the saying goes, the early bird gets the worm, and with that extra hour of rest, more of the proverbial “worms” get away. 

This marks the third year of your studies into this phenomenon, and this year you have been in Toronto studying the Blue Jays, any new insights?

Yes of course we’re always learning. This year my research on the Blue Jays builds upon our studies of the mid-atlantic Orioles last year, as well as the Northern Cardinals of Missouri in 2021. This year we found that observing birds further in the North, the effects were amplified. Not only did the birds lose an hour of sleep, but it was cold and snowy which made their nests feel even cozier, and therefore much more difficult to abandon with the early wake up call. 

So what comes next for you and your team?

We really did enjoy studying the mid-atlantic Orioles, so we’ll head back to Baltimore in the fall. While we were there last time we were intrigued by the Ravens, and we’re interested in seeing how the time change affects such a notoriously intelligent bird. 

Dr. Robert Dylan, as always it's a pleasure getting to speak with you, good luck with your studies.

Great to see you Jack, and please... call me Bob. Happy April 1st!