An agreement signed Friday cleared the way for the first nighttime football game during the fledgling seabird season on Kauai in seven years.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service signed an agreement with Kauai County allowing four night games this football season — the first was held Friday night, with others scheduled for Sept. 30, Oct. 7 and Nov. 4.

On Friday, Waimea High School held its homecoming football game at Hanapepe Stadium.

Football games on the Garden Isle have been a daytime affair since 2010, when the shift was made to accommodate the season from Sept. 15 to Dec. 15 when fledgling endangered Newell’s shearwaters are at risk of harm from bright lights. The seabirds can mistake bright lights, like those in stadiums, for the moon and stars that they instinctively use as a guide to fly out to sea. It was determined that young seabirds trying to find the sea and confused by bright stadium lights often fell to the ground from exhaustion.

The schedule change to day from night was made after the county admitted in September 2010 to violating the Migratory Bird Treaty Act because of its lighting policies at county facilities, including football stadiums. The county paid a fine and took corrective measures under a plea agreement. All lights, including those at parking facilities on the island, have since been retrofitted or replaced with shielded lights at an estimated cost of $5.4 million.

The four dates for nighttime football games were selected because the days were considered either early or late in the seabird fledgling season and that “shielding of the stadium lighting and/or moon presence in the evenings will minimize any anticipated takings,” according to the agreement.

“I think we look at this as another example of collaboration with the community, state and federal agencies to continue the mission of conservation,” said Aaron Ochoa, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service spokesman. Conservation cannot be achieved with one organization, he added.

The Newell’s shearwater population on Kauai has dramatically declined since the 1990s due to light distractions and predators such as feral cats.

Moving football games to days had angered many Kauai residents who felt the conservation of seabirds took precedence over the safety of children playing football under the hot sun, according to state Rep. Jimmy Tokioka, who represents Wailua Homesteads, Hanamaulu, Lihue, Puhi, Old Koloa Town and Omao.

Many are elated over the return of night games.

“We don’t have many activities as they do on Oahu and other islands,” Tokioka said, adding that night games had been a long-­standing tradition for the community for many years — allowing residents from all sides of the island to converge and support the schools.

“To be able to have the families to enjoy the evenings and be with the children and the community … it’s great for us,” said Bill Arakaki, Kauai complex-area superintendent.

Under the agreement, the county will set aside $60,000 to mitigate impacts to seabirds during the football season. Any grounded seabirds are expected to be recovered and transported to the Save Our Shearwaters program.

Staff from the county Department of Parks and Recreation will monitor the grounds during football games with volunteers from the Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (JROTC) of Waimea, Kapaa and Kauai high schools.

Officials recently trained the JROTC at Waimea High for tonight’s football game. The JROTC at Kapaa and Kauai high schools will soon undergo training for the football games in the coming weeks.

Kauai County Mayor Bernard Carvalho said the training and volunteer work are intended to educate students about the conservation of seabirds.

The memorandum of understanding was made as the county continues to work on the Kauai Seabird Habitat Conservation Plan.