As the seasons change, we delight in the longer days and seek out the sun as if recharging an internal battery. We pause in our rush from place to place and see and smell the sights and scents of spring. And for those listening, consciously or not, this cherished time of year is when birdsong begins before the sun is up and rises to a happy cacophony of birds lending their voices to ours urging spring to stop teasing and to settle in.

This birdsong signals the migratory season for 200 of the 450 species of birds found in New York that are making their way from their winter habitats and returning to their breeding habitats throughout the state. Some species migrate within the state or find suitable habitat in the same general location year round. Others, like the Golden-winged Warbler, have longer journeys and are returning from their winter in Central and South America to summer in the St. Lawrence Valley area. Driven by instinct, certain species of birds travel thousands of perilous miles to mate and lay eggs of the next generation, only to repeat the journey the following year.

This year, May 14 marks International Migratory Bird Day (IMBD). In addition to focusing on the important ways that birds have inspired many of the most important environmental conservation movements in the Americas, 2016 marks the centennial of the Migratory Bird Treaty, a landmark agreement between the U.S., Canada and Mexico to protect shared migratory birds.

For more than one hundred years, Audubon and our partners have understood and have been spreading the message that birds matter. Birds are indicator species — sentinels of the overall health and balance of our ecosystems. When that balance is challenged, birds are often the first to show the effects.

Birds need:

A healthy environment: By protecting birds, we’re also safeguarding New York’s great natural heritage, preserving our shared quality of life and fostering a healthier environment for us all.

Safe passage and places to nest: Natural habitat and open spaces are disappearing at an alarming rate. We need to raise our voices and call for the protection natural places and clean air and water.

Rich biodiversity: Biodiversity refers to the variety of life on Earth and is what keeps ecosystems functioning properly. We have a shared responsibility to protect, conserve, and restore ecosystems for the benefit of our and future generations.

Sound familiar? What’s good for birds is good for people, what’s good for people is good birds. Our fates are intertwined.

Audubon New York is the state’s leading voice for the conservation and protection of natural resources for birds. Our efforts are focused on five conservation strategies: putting working lands to work for birds and people, sharing our seas and shores, saving important bird areas, shaping a healthy climate and clean energy future and creating bird-friendly communities.

Look out your window, pause in your daily routine and you might see or hear a Bald Eagle or a Blue-winged Teal. Welcome them and know that they are a sign that the habitat found in your neighborhood is healthy and safe. As D. H. Lawrence wrote, “For man, as for flower and beast and bird, the supreme triumph is to be most vividly, most perfectly alive.”

Erin M. Crotty is the Executive Director of Audubon New York and Vice President of the National Audubon Society out of Troy.​