Wildlife landscaping at schools
Benefits of wildlife landscaping
Wildlife landscaping at schools:
- Provides an outdoor learning laboratory
- Fosters student participation in solving local environmental issues
- Improves habitat for local wildlife
- Increases diversity and pest control
First concept: The four basic needs of wildlife
- Food
- Plants provide natural food sources
- Native plants are recommended
- Provide sources of food year-round
- Supplement with bird feeders if desired
- Water
- Most important habitat feature
- Provide sources of water year-round
- Birdbaths, ponds, creeks, wetlands are good examples
- Cover is a habitat requirement that prevents waste of energy
- Space
- The home range is the area used by an animal for all its activities
- The territory is defined as all or part of a home range defended to exclude competitors
Second concept: Limiting factor
- This is the habitat requirement that is in shortest supply
- The limiting factor prevents the wildlife population from growing
- Food, water and cover can usually be increased
- Space usually cannot be increased
Third concept: Carrying capacity
- This is the number of a given species that a habitat can sustain
- Carrying capacity can be increased by managing for a limiting factor
- Long-term improvements include planting natural sources of food and shelter
Fourth concept: Succession
- Succession is the replacement of one biological community with another
- Different species of wildlife occur at all stages of succession
- You can increase wildlife diversity by providing multiple stages of succession
Fifth concept: Fragmented landscapes
- Edges
- Habitat edges or ecotones are the transition zones between two or more plant communities
- Many species use edges
- Corridors
- Habitat connecting other isolated patches of habitat
- Provides for movement of organisms
- Larger corridors provide habitat for more species
Sixth concept: Habitat diversity
Diversity can be classified in two ways:
- Species — different plant species and ages
- Structural — vertical, horizontal and unique features
Increase structural diversity
- Vertically — layering herbs, shrubs, trees
- Horizontally — create a variety of habitat types using successional stages
- Unique features — snags, logs, rock walls and brush piles
Seventh concept: Arrangement
- Arrangement is providing food, cover and water in close proximity to one another
- Go for the natural look — avoid planting in rows
- Consider direction of prevailing winds
Key things to remember
- Wildlife need food, water, cove, and space
- Diversity creates habitat
- Remove invasive species
- Plant natives
- Have fun
Previously titled
Principles of Wildlife Management
