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1 -A C- f *•’ V'* ^ •0 Principles of Landscaping for Wildlife i Chapter 3 "Landscaping for Wildlife" involves some new principles which are beyond the scope of traditional landscape practices. This is because some traditional land scaping criteria for plants are not related to wildlife needs. A land scaping strategy that incorpo rates wildlife, however, adds new criteria based on wildlife benefits. There are essentially nine prin ciples involved in landscaping for wildlife. 1. Provide the four basic needs of wildlife — food, water, shelter and space. Wild animals have four basic needs for survival: food, water, shelter and space. If you keep those needs in mind as you develop a landscape plan, you will have an excellent chance for success. Food Every species has its own unique food requirements. Food requirements change as an ani mal grows older and from one season to another. Food includes obvious nutritional parts of an an imal's diet as well as supplements like salt. Grit or gravel is required by many birds for grinding up food in their gizzards. Several types of foods can be provided in a landscaping plan: fruits and berries, grain and seeds, nectar sources, nuts and acorns, browse plants (woody twigs and buds), for age plants (grasses and leg umes) and aquatic plants. Many insects and other inverte brates are attracted to trees and shrubs. They also provide a food source for wildlife. Water Water! The Importance of water for wildlife cannot be overempha sized. Springs, beaver ponds, marshes, creeks, swamps, lakes, and rivers are vital components of our environment. Species ranging from deer to ducks to dragonflies depend on water for survival. One of your biggest challenges in de veloping a landscape for wildlife is to preserve and manage watery habitats where they still exist, to create ponds where they are absent, and to restore wetlands where they have previously been destroyed. Shelter Shelter, or cover, is necessary for protection from adverse weather and for hiding from pred ators. Shelter is particularly criti cal while animals are nesting and raising their young. It is also nec essary when animals sleep or rest. Shelter can come in many forms. It can be trees, shrubs, grasses, flowers, or structures like rockpiles. brushpiles. cut banks, hollow trees, bird houses, burrows, bridges and abandoned buildings. Space Every wildlife species has a unique pattern of space or territo rial needs. By understanding how much territory is defended by a pair of house wrens, bluebirds, ruffed grouse and other species you can learn how much wildlife can reasonably be expected to oc cur on your property. Loons and trumpeter swans will defend up to 100 acres of lake or wetland for their nesting territory. A ruffed grouse pair needs about 10 acres. Bluebirds need about 5 acres per pair. In contrast, wood ducks and purple martins do not defend territories around their nests, so many pairs can nest within a limited area. Additional statistics on home range requirements are presented in Appendix E. 2. Function The "function ” served by plants and structures is more important than their appearance. Don't base your planting decisions solely on whether or not a plant is pretty. Find out if it provides good nest ing cover, winter cover, edible fruits, butterfly nectar, grains, nuts, acorns or other factors of value to wildlife. Think in terms of providing the fnnr basic require ments of wildlife. •W'C-' Water is essential for the survival of creatures, including the Blanchard ’s cricket frog. 3. Dive'-sity High species diversity is an in tegral part of a good landscaping plan. A high diversity of plant spe cies helps protect against drastic changes caused by plant disease and insect pests. It also attracts a higher diversity of wildlife for you to see and enjoy. Three kinds of diversity are important — plant diversity, struc tural diversity and vertical diversity. i