Certified Wildlife Habitat

Wild About Nature? Get Your Yard Certified

Inspirational video here about the impact of Certifying your Yard: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xvl9hgtoHUk

Anyone can create a welcoming haven for local wildlife. In fact, wildlife habitat gardens support twice as much wildlife as conventional lawns and non-native plant gardens. Turning your yard, balcony container garden or work landscape into a Certified Wildlife Habitat to attract birds, butterflies, and other neighborhood wildlife is fun, easy, and can make a lasting difference. Here is what your wildlife habitat should include:
 
Food: Native plants provide food eaten by a variety of wildlife. Feeders can supplement natural food sources.
 
Water: All animals need water to survive, and some need it for bathing or breeding as well.
 
Cover: Wildlife need places to take shelter from bad weather and places to hide from predators or hunt for prey.
 
Places to Raise Young: Wildlife need resources to reproduce, and to protect and nourish their young.
 
Sustainable Practices: Maintain your yard or garden in natural ways to ensure soil, air, and water stay healthy and clean.
 
Certify your space to show your commitment to wildlife. It’s easier than you might think. Wild Birds Unlimited is a Champion Sponsor of the NWF Certified Wildlife Habitat Program. Learn more on how to certify your wildlife habitat by clicking here, https://www.wbu.com/certify-your-yard 

Create your own 'Homegrown National Park'...."SMALL EFFORTS BY MANY PEOPLE: 83% of land in the U.S. is privately owned. If we planted native on 50% of private land we would restore biodiversity…" “Chances are you never thought of your garden—indeed, all of your property—as a wildlife preserve that presents the last chance we have for sustaining plants and animals that were once common throughout the U.S. But that is exactly the role our suburban landscapes are playing.” - Doug Tallamy 

Appeal to Your Songbirds with a 'Birdscaped' Yard

When it comes to making a home and yard more appealing to people, homeowners understand the value of landscaping. Making yards more attractive to birds and other wildlife takes a slightly different type of planning that’s called "birdscaping."

People typically make their landscaping choices based on what looks good and is easy to maintain. If you take the next step and consider how those choices affect your feathered friends, you can create a backyard habitat that will support birds.

Birdscaping centers on offering a combination of food, shelter, water and places where birds can safely raise their young.

Attracting a variety of birds takes a variety of foods. The best way to provide that food is through vegetation that produces nuts, berries, fruits, seeds and nectar. You can supplement the plants you have with feeders.

Depending on the species, anything from small shrubs to brush piles to mature trees will provide that shelter, so having several types will serve the needs of many birds. Use plants that are native to our local climate and suitable for your yard’s type of soil. Find information about native plants appropriate to your area here.  as well as this local resource. 

Having a clean source of water will also attract a wider variety of birds. Birds need water just as much as they need food, because their high metabolic rate and respiratory system drains moisture from their bodies quickly. Birds use water for more than just a thirst quencher; they also use it for bathing and preening their feathers. Clean feathers are important for birds’ health and optimum flying ability.

The final element ensures the viability of your yard as an ongoing habitat. People seek out the perfect neighborhoods in which to raise their children, and birds do the same. As more natural habitat is destroyed, it’s important that we provide usable replacements such as nesting boxes.