Native landscaping better than 'standard'

I don't usually copy other blog articles but this one touches an area that I am quite passionate about- native landscaping to create suburban wildlife habitats. Read on...

From Cool Green Science Blog
Get Native, Backyard Birders!
By Dave Mehlman
The February 2009 issue of Conservation Biology has a research paper on the impacts of native plants on birds and butterflies in the suburbs of southeastern Pennsylvania.
To my knowledge, this is the first scientific study to compare “standard” landscaping (lawns, ornamental trees and shrubs) with “native” landscaping (using grasses and other groundcovers, shrubs and trees that naturally occur in the area).
Since one of my interests is in the use of native plants for yard landscaping and in how to make yards more attractive for birds, this paper immediately caught my eye!
The research team from the University of Delaware found very significant differences between otherwise similar properties that differed in their landscaping. Properties with native landscaping had significantly more species of birds and more individual birds that those with standard landscaping.
Similarly, there were more species of conservation concern (including Wood Thrush, Scarlet Tanager, and Eastern Towhee), and they were more abundant in properties with native landscaping. The authors suspect that what’s going on is that the more diverse native landscapes attract more numbers and kinds of insects, which in turn serve as food for the birds.
This conclusion is supported by the finding that there were significantly more kinds and numbers of insect-eating birds at properties with native landscapes than standard landscapes, while the kinds and numbers of birds that eat everything (omnivores) was the same between the two kinds of sites.
While we clearly need to have this kind of work replicated in more geographic areas, this suggests great benefits to landscaping with native plants, at least in the eastern United States. So all of us with yards can contribute to the work of bird conservation (and enjoy some really cool plants at the same time!).
There is quite a lot of information available on how to improve your yard for birds and other wildlife. A good place to start is the Certified Wildlife Habitat program of the National Wildlife Federation. And it’s never too early to start!

Earth Hour

Earth Hour
On 28 March 2009 millions of people around the globe will unite for one hour and switch off their lights to show that they care about our living planet.

media release- Camp Bayou Ruskin

Join us for this “Year of Science 2009” event. Find out what it’s like to be a citizen scientist at the 1st Annual Citizen Science Symposium, March 20–21, 2009, from 9 a.m.–2 p.m. Hands-on activities, trail walks, displays and seminars will be offered throughout the event, exploring the citizen science for butterflies, birds, aquatic invertebrates, frogs, plants and more. Admission free with online pre-registration; link located at http://www.campbayou.org ; $5 if registering onsite on the day of the event. Camp Bayou is a partnership between the Ruskin Community Development Foundation, Inc. and Hillsborough County Parks , Recreation and Conservation. This event is sponsored by a grant from the Alafia River Basin Board of the Southwest Florida Water Management District.

Media release- Camp Bayou, Ruskin

Media contact: Dolly Cummings phone: 813-363-5438 email: campbayou@yahoo.com Citizen Science Photo Contest Calling all nature photographers! A photo contest began on February 1 and will continue until the start of the Citizen Science Symposium at Camp Bayou on March 20-21, 2009. Winners will be announced at the end of the event. Contest rules: 1. The subject of the pictures should be plants growing at Camp Bayou that are in various stages of growth. See the Project Budburst website for explanations of the various phases. Other subjects are permitted in the photo (insects, spiders, etc.) but the focus should be on the plant and its growth phase. Camp Bayou is open Thursday- Saturday, 9am-2pm. 2. Photos must be in a digital .jpg format, no larger than 4000 KB. 3. Photos should be emailed to campbayou@yahoo.com , along with the following info in this format: Name: Town, state: email address: growth phase: Comments/observations from the field: Entries that are not complete will not be accepted. 4. The contest is open to all ages. 5. Photos will be placed on the Cit Sci Flickr site and be available for viewing by the general public. Photos will be reduced in size to 400 KB before appearing on the Cit Sci Flickr site to ensure space for everyone's work. Participation in this contest implies that contestant agrees to allow photo to be used by Camp Bayou for publicity, exhibit or other purposes without financial compensation. During the Citizen Science Symposium, March 20-21, 2009, all the photos will on display through a digital slideshow. 6. Photos will be judged on clarity of growth phase pictured. For more on growth phases see announcement online at http://www.campbayou.org/. Grand Prize: A canvas bag filled with goodies to help get the most of our your day outdoors: binoculars, critter keeper, field guide, bandana, water bottle, sunscreen, bug repellent and more, plus a Camp Bayou t-shirt and hat. For updates on this and other Citizen Science Symposium information, follow the link located at http://www.campbayou.org/. Contact Dolly if you have questions at campbayou@yahoo.com or 813-363-5438. Camp Bayou is located 3 miles south of SR674 at the end of 24th St SE in Ruskin. Camp Bayou is a partnership between the Ruskin Community Development Foundation, Inc. and Hillsborough County Parks, Recreation and Conservation. ### Pictured: A Chicksaw Plum in "first flower" Photo credit: Dolly Cummings