A “green” red, white, and blue

Every year, we the people celebrate our rights to “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” on Independence Day with cookouts, fireworks, and parades. But sometimes our pursuit of happiness can stress out wildlife.

Consider the bald eagle. Ironically, our national symbol is vulnerable to Independence Day festivities because their young are usually still nest-bound in July. If fireworks frighten a bald eagle away from its nest, its eaglets are left exposed to predators, inclement weather, and hunger.

Remember our national symbol when planning your Fourth of July celebrations. Fireworks can frighten bald eagles away from their nests, leaving eaglets vulnerable to predators and inclement weather. Keith Williams/Creative Commons

While planning your Fourth of July festivities this year, think about the bald eagle. What would make Independence Day celebrations more welcoming to this iconic bird?

Here are some Fourth of July pitfalls to avoid:

• Fireworks: Those flashes of light and loud explosions might be exciting for people, but for many animals, they’re downright terrifying. Those of you with a dog who cowers under the bed when you vacuum know what I’m talking about. Attend official fireworks events, where pyrotechnics companies follow federal guidelines for mitigating disturbances to wildlife.
• Wildfire: Aside from being loud, fireworks have the potential to start wildfires, which can destroy habitat and property. Also, that festive handheld explosive you are about to light with a match? It can hurt you too. Fireworks should probably fall into the “don’t try this at home” category.
• Nesting disruption: Fireworks and the crowds that gather to watch them on beaches are particularly disruptive to piping plovers and other nesting shorebirds that depend on this habitat to raise families, feed, and nest. Look for signs marking wildlife habitat, and follow posted guidance to protect shorebirds. If you are on a beach where pets are permitted, keep them leashed and away from birds at all times.
• Litter: Litter from firecrackers, bottle rockets and other explosives can be choking hazards for wildlife, and may even be toxic if ingested. And speaking of litter….
• Plastic: During holiday celebrations we tend to break out the plastic utensils, plates and cups. Yes, plasticware means fewer dishes to wash, but it also means more plastic in the waste stream, and eventually, in our oceans.
• Fishing gear: Broken fishing line, lures, and hooks left on beaches can injure or kill wildlife. Be sure to properly discard fishing line and hooks in trash containers. If there aren’t any containers on site, bring your trash home to throw away.

If you are spending time on the beach this summer, be sure to keep your distance from shorebirds, like piping plover, that depend on coastal habitat to survive. USFWS

Natural fireworks

There is a bright side — literally — to foregoing fireworks: summer is full of dazzling light displays that are free, and won’t terrify eagles.

Here are some natural fireworks to be on the lookout for this summer.

Synchronous fireflies flash in unison at Great Smoky Mountains National Park. NPS

Light my fire — Fireflies, moon bugs, glow worms, or lightening bugs — whatever you call them, these remarkable beetles are one of the few insects that people actually look forward to seeing in the summer. The flash of a firefly is part of a complex system of insect seduction. While in the air, male fireflies use distinctive patterns of flashing and flight to signal to females of their species on the ground. Females then respond with a flash after a set interval that signals they are of the same species. Love is in the air.

• Viewing tips: There are more than 150 species of fireflies in North America, and different types are active at different times of the season, and different times of the night. From late May into July, it’s possible to see fireflies starting at dusk, through the wee hours of the morning.

Bioluminescent dinoflagellates, tiny marine organisms, emit blue-green light when agitated by crashing waves. Kevin Baird/Creative Commons

Making waves — In oceans the world over, tiny marine organisms called dinoflagellates drift passively in currents, unseen during the day unless their populations increase rapidly and create an algal bloom called “red tide.” At night, bioluminescent dinoflagellates can emit flashes of blue-green light when disturbed, say by crashing waves, and turn dark waters into liquid galaxies. Though it draws our attention, that flash of light is designed to startle predators, like larval fish and crabs, that graze on plankton.

• Viewing tips: Although dinoflagellates occur in every ocean, it’s hard to predict when and where to see them from shore. But if you happen to be near the ocean, take a walk along the beach at night, and look for sparkling lights in the surf at the water’s edge.

A meteor streaks across the night sky. Bill Ingalls/NASA

Great balls of fire — For a few weeks every summer, residents of the Northern hemisphere are treated to prime nightly viewings of the cosmic debris streaming from Comet Swift-Tuttle — a large celestial body in our solar system. Known as the Perseids Meteor Shower, this annual celestial show usually peaks in mid August, and features 50 to 100 meteors per hour. Many leave long “wakes” of light and color behind them as they streak through earth’s atmosphere. According to NASA, the Perseids are also known for their fireballs — larger explosions of light and color that can persist longer than an average meteor streak.

• Viewing tips: For the best view of meteor showers, pick a clear night to observe the night sky from open areas far from urban and suburban lights. The best time to start looking is around midnight, but they will be visible until dawn.

A build up of electric charges from colliding ice droplets, discharging from the upper atmosphere. Also known as lightning. Johannes Plenio/Pexels

Thunderstruck — On hot, sticky summer days, warm air rises from the earth’s surface, transferring heat to the upper atmosphere where water vapor condenses to form clouds. Those clouds continue to rise into freezing air, where ice droplets form, and start to crash into each other, sometimes exchanging electric charges. As lots of those collisions happen, charge builds up, and discharges as lightning, which we see as a flash or jagged streak of light, and hear as a soundwave called thunder.

• Viewing tips: Your home is the safest place to observe a thunderstorm. When you hear thunder, get inside quickly. A building is ideal, but a car is better than nothing. If you get caught in a storm while out for a hike, get to lower ground by hiking downhill, or sheltering in a ditch. Avoid large isolated natural features like tall trees and big boulders, and structures like tents and pavilions. Stay out of the water. Once safely inside, enjoy the show!