Lights out for Larry: The Burden of Brightness on Birds
Two weeks ago, a common blue bird disappeared from the city of San Francisco.
You know the bird.

The one soaring with its upturned belly, migrating through the digital space. I guess its name was Larry.
Back in 2012, when Martin Grasser, Todd Waterbury and Angy Che began designing the twitter logo, Larry, they wanted the bird to feel less like an individual artist’s interpretation, and more like a system of “overlapping circles and connections”.
This blog is about the overlapping circles, where social media meets ego, where visibility and convenience meets moderation and safety, where artificial light meets the dark star-studded sky and migrating birds meet our urban cities. This blog piece is about Larry, the thing that replaced Larry, and a reminder for all of us to encourage building owners and managers to turn off their lights at night.
You see, on Monday, July 24, twitter owner Elon Musk announced a new rebrand for the social media platform. That very same Monday (at least based on SF Department of Building Inspection complaint reports), workers began tearing down Larry from the side of the building headquarters of what is now known as X, without the proper permits from the city of San Francisco.
Apparently, the workers were asked to stop Larry’s removal because; 1. They didn’t have the proper permits to start the process to begin with and… 2. They hadn’t closed off the sidewalk where the unofficial worksite was, thereby putting people in danger… yikes.
Let’s just say, before you go removing birds from their nests, always check with a professional before proceeding with business as usual. (Need a nest survey? Contact your local wildlife biologist here). But I digress.
Credit: Fact Intensity
By Friday, July 28, complaints started flooding the SF Department of Building Inspection tracking system, with residents of San Francisco pointing out a giant flashing sign in the shape of an X at the top of X’s headquarters secured to a temporary ballast, or as one complaint noted “a couple of sandbags”.
But, what does this have to do with real birds? Don’t worry I’m getting there…
Twenty four complaints were filed in all. With most noting how structurally unsound the sign seemed, how the light was too bright at night, how people living in the general vicinity couldn’t sleep, how the flashing strobe-like effect could cause epileptic seizures, that it could potentially distract drivers and cyclists and that it was generally disorienting and nausea inducing.…