The research concluded the birds are drawn toward that type of light and become confused and exhausted or collide with the towers and their supporting guy wires, killing thousands of birds every year. As a result of the research conclusions, wildlife organizations, the telecommunication industry, and the Federal Communication Commission collectively asked the FAA to consider changing its lighting standards to reduce migratory bird fatalities by developing configurations that feature flashing lights instead of steady-burning lights, or completely omit the steady-burning lights in some cases. 

After evaluating the proposal, the FAA conducted flight tests in northern Michigan to compare the traditional steady-burning lighting with a variety of different types of flashing lights. The results showed that the new configurations that featured flashing lights provided acceptable warnings for pilots and were likely to result in a significant decrease in bird fatalities.