Please send your
question regarding habitat development and
gardening for birds to gardening@birdzilla.com.
We'll answer as many as we can and post selected
answers here.
Q.
Wildlife doesn't just randomly occur in a given
area; it is there in response to habitat which
meets its needs. What are the four essential
elements of a wildlife habitat, including for
birds? DF -
Atlanta, GA
A. Food,
water, cover (protection from weather and
predators) and space to raise a family.
Tom
Patrick is president of the
Windstar
Wildlife
Institute.
Tom's company provides training and
certification in wildlife habitat
development programs. Thanks to Tom and
some of his Certified Wildlife Habitat
Naturalists for answering the
questions.
Q.
Feeders are used to supplement the foods provided
by trees, shrubs, flowers, crops in food plots,
vines and ground covers. What are the different
types of feeders? TR - LA,
CA.
A. Cylindrical,
hopper, suet, hummingbird, squirrel and
fruit.
Colorado
Plants for Wildlife Habitat & Conservation Landscaping
Do you enjoy
observing nature...hearing the song of the
chickadee...watching hummingbirds fill up on nectar
from trumpet vines...listening to the chattering of
squirrels...seeing the beauty and grace of a
monarch butterfly perched on a milkweed...
experiencing the antics of a Mockingbird...the
cooing of the Mourning Doves...the swiftness of the
Cottontail...and the brilliance of a Cardinal or
Baltimore Oriole?
If the answer is
"yes", you'll probably want to landscape your
property for wildlife so you can experience even
more from Mother Nature by attracting more wildlife
to your property.
Wildlife doesn't
just randomly appear in a given area. It is there
because of favorable habitat. The essential
elements that you must provide in your habitat are
food, water, cover and a place to raise a family.
To attract the most wildlife, you need native
trees, shrubs, groundcover, vines and wildflowers,
many of which will provide food and
shelter.
Native or
indigenous plants naturally occur in the region in
which they evolved. They are adapted to local soil,
rainfall and temperature conditions, and have
developed natural defenses to many insects and
diseases. Because of these traits, native plants
will grow with minimal use of water, fertilizers
and pesticides. Wildlife species evolve with
plants; therefore, they use native plant
communities as their habitat. Using native plants
helps preserve the balance and beauty of natural
ecosystems.
Remember the
function served by plants and structures is more
important than their appearance. In other words,
don't base your planting decisions solely on what a
plant looks like. Following are WindStar Wildlife
Institute's plant recommendations for wildlife
habitats in Colorado:
Trees
- River Birch;
Eastern Hemlock; Eastern White, Jack and Virginia
Pine; Eastern Red and Northern White Cedar; Bald
Cypress; Green and White Ash; American Beech;
Blackgum; Black Cherry; Shellbark and Shagbark
Hickory; Hackberry; Black, Bur, Chinquapin, Pin,
Red, Scarlet, Swamp Chestnut, Swamp White and White
Oak; Pecan; Persimmon; American Sweetgum; American
Sycamore; Tuliptree; and Black Walnut.
Shrubs
- Serviceberry,
Elderberry, Blackhaw; Floweing, Rough Leaved, Gray,
Red-osier and Silky Dogwood; Chokecherry,
Nannyberry, Redbud, Shining, Smooth and Staghorn
Sumac; Arrowwood; buttonbush; Black Chokeberry;
Hazelnut; Ninebark; Wild Plum; Spicebush; and
Winterberry
Grasses
- Big and
Little Bluestem; Indiangrass; Switchgrass; Hairy
Dropseed; Sideouts Grama; Tufted Hairgrass;
Woodrush; Indian Ricegrass
Colorado can be
divided into five life zones that are broadly
defined by the plant communities that occur at the
approximate elevations described below. The Plains
life zone, 3,500 to 5,500 feet, is located in
eastern Colorado where the majority of Colorado's
population resides. It is dominated by grasslands
and streamside cottonwoods. In western Colorado,
the Upper Sonoran life zone is located at altitudes
below 7,000 feet, and in the San Luis Valley, below
8,000 feet. This zone is characterized by
semidesert shrublands and Piñon Pine-Juniper
woodlands at its upper limit.
The Foothills life
zone occurs from 5,500 to 8,000 feet and is
dominated by dry land shrubs such as Gambel Oak and
Mountain-Mahogany, and, in southern and western
Colorado, Piñon-Juniper woodlands and
Sagebrush. The Montane zone consists of Ponderosa
Pine, Douglas Fir, Lodgepole Pine, and Aspen
woodlands at elevations of 8,000 to 9,500 feet.
Dense forests of Subalpine Fir and Engelmann Spruce
dominate the Subalpine zone at 9,500 to 11,500
feet. The Alpine zone above 11,500 feet is a
treeless zone made up of grasslands called tundra.
Species requiring medium to high moisture occur
along watercourses throughout all zones.The
Colorado
Native Plant
Society can
provide lists of plants for a specific
region.
For more
information on improving your wildlife habitat,
visit the WindStar
Wildlife Institute web
site. On
the web site, you can also apply to certify your
property as a wildlife habitat, register for the
"Certified Wildlife Habitat Naturalist e-Learning
course, become a member and sign up for the FREE
WindStar Wildlife Garden Weekly e-mail
newsletter.
