Owens Laboratory

The Owens laboratory studies
how organisms and ecosystems
cope with artificial light at night.

EVERYTHING LIGHT TOUCHES

Alberti M, Correa C, Marzluff JM, Hendry AP, Palkovacs EP, Gotanda KM, Hunt VM, Apgar TM, Zhou Y. 2017. Global urban signatures of phenotypic change in animal and plant opulations. PNAS.
Cox DTC, Sánchez de Miguel A, Bennie J, Dzurjak SA, Gaston KJ. 2022. Majority of artificially lit Earth surface associated with the non-urban population. Science of the Total Environment.
Wang L, Meng L, Richardson AD, Hölker F, Li H, et al. 2025. Artificial light at night outweighs temperature in lengthening urban growing seasons. Nature Cities.
Hopkins GR, Gaston KJ, Visser ME, Elgar MA, Jones TM. 2018. Artificial light at night as a driver of evolution across urban-rural landscapes. Frontiers in Ecology and Environment.
Johnson MTJ, Munshi-South J. 2017. Evolution of life in urban environments. Science.
Guetté A, Godet L, Juigner M, Robin M. 2018. Worldwide increase in artificial light at night around protected areas and within biodiversity hotspots. Biological Conservation.
Owens ACS, Pocock MJO, Seymoure BM. 2024. Current evidence in support of insect-friendly lighting practices. Current Opinion in Insect Science.
Battles I, Burkness E, Crossley MS, Edwards CB, Holmstrom K, Hutchison W, Ingerson-Mahar J, Owens D, Owens ACS. 2024. Moths are less attracted to light traps than they used to be. Journal of Insect Conservation.
Degen T, Mitesser O, Perkin EK, Weiß N-S, Oehlert M, Mattig E, Hölker F. 2016. Street lighting: Sex-independent impacts on moth movement. Journal of Animal Ecology.
Voigt CC, Azam C, Dekker J, Ferguson J, Fritze M, Gazaryan S, Hölker F, et al. 2018. Guidelines for consideration of bats in lighting projects. Eurobats.
Delhey K, Peters A. 2017. Conservation implications of anthropogenic impacts on visual communication and camouflage. Conservation Biology.
Owens ACS, Van den Broeck M, De Cock R, Lewis SM. 2022. Behavioral responses of bioluminescent fireflies to artificial light at night. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution.
Gilbert NA, McGinn KA, Nunes LA, Shipley AA, et al. 2022. Daily activity timing in the Anthropocene. TREE.
Seymoure BM, Buxton R, White JM, Linares CR, Fristrup K, Crooks K, Wittemyer G, Angeloni L. 2025. Global artificial light masks biologically important light cycles of animals. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment.
Coetzee BWT, Gaston KJ, Koekemoer LL, Kruger T, Riddin MA, Smit IPJ. 2022. Artificial light as a modulator of mosquito-borne disease risk. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution.
Kernbach ME, Hall RJ, Burkett-Cadena N, Unnasch TR, Martin LB. 2018. Dim light at night: Physiological effects and ecological consequences for infectious disease. Integrative and Comparative Biology.
Bennie J, Davies TW, Cruse D, Gaston KJ. 2016. Ecological effects of artificial light at night on wild plants. The Journal of Ecology.
Grubisic M, van Grunsven RHA, Kyba CCM, Manfrin A, Hölker F. 2018. Insect declines and agroecosystems: Does light pollution matter? Annals of Applied Biology.
Sanders D, Hirt MR, Brose U, Evans DM, Gaston KJ, Gauzens B, Ryser R. 2023. How artificial light at night may rewire ecological networks: Concepts and models. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B.
Dominoni DM, Halfwerk W, Baird E, Buxton RT, et al. 2020.
Why conservation biology can benefit from sensory ecology. Nature Ecology & Evolution.
Lucas RJ, Allen AE, Brainard GC, Brown TM, et al. 2024. Recommendations for measuring and standardizing light for laboratory mammals to improve welfare and reproducibility in animal research. PLoS Biology.
Pattison M, Donnelly S. 2021. Domesticated animal responses to light R&D discussion. U.S. Department of Energy.

Agathokleous E. 2023. Light pollution driven by climate change. Science.
Gaston KJ, Gardner AS, Cox DTC. 2023. Anthropogenic changes to the nighttime environment. Bioscience.
Johnston ASA, Jiyoung K, Harris JA. 2025. Widespread influence of artificial light at night on ecosystem metabolism. Nature Climate Change.
Kyba CCM, Altıntaş YÖ, Walker CE, Newhouse M. 2023. Citizen scientists report global rapid reductions in the visibility of stars from 2011 to 2022. Science.
Navigant Consulting, Inc. 2019. Energy savings forecast of solid-state lighting in general illumination applications. U.S. Department of Energy.
Kocifaj M, Wallner S, Barentine JC. 2023. Measuring and monitoring light pollution: Current approaches and challenges. Science.
Falchi F, Bará S, Cinzano P, Lima RC, Pawley M. 2023. A call for scientists to halt the spoiling of the night sky with artificial light and satellites. Nature Astronomy.
Barentine JC. 2024. The air/light pollution connection. Dark Sky Consulting, LLC.
Hamacher DW, De Napoli K, Mott B. 2020. Whitening the sky: Light pollution as a form of cultural genocide. Journal of Dark Sky Studies.
Kortava D. 2021. The controversial floodlights illuminating New York City’s public-housing developments. The New Yorker.
Zielinska-Dabkowska KM, Schernhammer ES, Hanifin JP, Brainard GC. 2023. Reducing nighttime light exposure in the urban environment to benefit human health and society. Science.
Himschoot EA, Crump MC, Buckley S, Cai C, Lawson S, White J, et al. 2024. Feelings of safety for visitors recreating outdoors at night in different artificial lighting conditions. Journal of Environmental Psychology.
Yakushina Y. 2024. Light pollution regulations and where to find them. Journal of Environmental Management.
DarkSky International advocates for science-backed policy priorities that reduce light pollution.
Zielińska-Dabkowska KM, Xavia K, Bobkowska K. 2020. Assessment of citizens’ actions against light pollution with guidelines for future initiatives. Sustainability.