An Invitation to Nature

Would you like to help wildlife all year long? Would you like to watch wildlife in your own back yard? If you make it an inviting place, you'll be able to spend hours watching birds and animals. It's not hard to do... just offer an invitation!

Since wild animals can't understand our words, we need to tell they they're welcome in a different way... by providing three important things:

Shelter Water Food

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Shelter is a place to live and call home. All living things need a place to live and protection from the weather.

Birds need:

• Trees and bushes for hiding, perching and nesting

• Protection from cats, dogs and people

• Nesting boxes and birdhouses

Mammals need:

• Trees and shrubs for hiding and nesting

• Protection from cats, dogs and people

• Squirrels need nesting boxes hung high in a sturdy tree

• Bats need roosting boxes hung high in a sturdy tree or on a pole

• Brush piles and fallen logs for rabbits, raccoons, and other small mammals

Reptiles and Amphibians need:

• Water, like ponds, creeks, rivers or lakes for habitat and foraging. 

• Rocks. Many snakes need the sinkholes beneath large rocks so that they can hibernate there in cold weather. Frogs, too, will burrow underneath rocks and into the ground so that they can hibernate.

• Brush piles. Reptiles and amphibians need safe areas underneath which to hide.

• Toad houses. Frogs and toads like to hide beneath things, and toad houses are gratefully used.

Splish Splash

Water is something that all animals need. They are attracted to the sound of running water. You're very lucky if you have a creek or a river running through your yard because you'll see many different types of birds and animals drinking or bathing there. Even if you don't have running water nearby, you can still provide water by using your imagination. Your family can build a small pond or set out a birdbath. A very shallow dish, like a pie plate or a saucer, will make a great bathing and drinking spot for small birds and animals. It's important to keep the water clean and fresh so that the birds and animals don't become sick. Change the water at least once a day, and if you have a lot of visitors you may want to do this more often. Ponds are more work - follow the instructions that came with the kit.

Birds:

All birds have their own style of bathing and it's fun to watch their antics. Small birds need shallow areas, while larger birds like a little more room. Some birds will even come to run through the spray of a garden sprinkler. Being clean feels good! When they've finished bathing, birds will fly up into a tree and groom their feathers. This is called "preening". Birds find it harder to fly when they're soaking wet, so you may want to place your birdbaths near trees or tall shrubs so they don't have to fly very far to safety.

Did you know that birds don't bathe only in water? They also like to take a "dust bath" in sand or dry soil. They flutter and roll around to get rid of small insects in their feathers. If you provide a small pile of fine sand, you'll see some interesting sights!

Mammals:

Mammals also need to bathe and drink. Some mammals love to swim! A birdbath will be visited by squirrels looking for a drink of water. A man-made pond will used by many small mammals, and you should make sure there's a shallow area so they can drink and wash safely. Larger mammals such as deer, bears and raccoons will drink from a pond too, but bears, raccoons and others need to fish and hunt for food. If you're lucky enough to have natural water on your property, you probably have wild neighbours who come to share it with you.

Amphibians and reptiles:

Amphibians and reptiles require natural water sources. Frogs and toads need water to spawn their eggs. The tadpoles that hatch from those eggs require water vegetation to eat and grow. Turtles need water for swimming, drinking and eating as well.
Some species of snake rely on water and not only hunt at the perimeter of water, but will enter it to hunt frogs and other animals.


The Wildlife Cafe 

The best way to invite nature into your yard is to provide food. Natural foods are very important, but you can offer other things that are healthy and nutritious for those times when natural foods are scarce. 

Birds like:

Naturally occurring foods: bushes and shrubs with berries fruit trees  flowers and nectar insects, grubs and worms

Foods you can provide:

• Seeds. Feeders with a nice mix of wild birdseed will attract many birds. Some birds, particularly goldfinches, chickadees, and pine siskins, like a small black seed called niger or thistle. Other birds enjoy sunflower seeds or cracked corn. Some birds will come to your feeders all year long, but in winter even more birds will appear. Don't be surprised to find woodpeckers, nuthatches and other birds you haven't seen before.

• Suet is made of ground up fat, and its a real treat for the birds. Sometimes suet will have seeds mixed in as well. You can buy suet balls at many grocery stores and butcher shops, and suet cakes are sold at pet food stores. You can buy special feeders to hold suet and hang them in trees. A log that's hollowed out on the top will also hold suet. Suet is something we put out only when the weather turns cold and there are no insects left for birds to eat. It's full of calories and energy, so it can make a big difference to birds in the winter. Because it's made from fat, warm weather can spoil suet and make it unsafe to eat. 

• Nuts. Many birds love shelled nuts or finely chopped nuts. Blue jays, crows and many other birds enjoy whole peanuts. You can buy something called "peanut hearts" at most pet food stores, and they're popular with jays, chickadees, nuthatches, woodpeckers and others. Even left-over baking nuts are a hit!

• Nectar. Hummingbirds and orioles both like nectar. Hummingbirds will come to yards where there are a lot of flowers, and they especially like the colour red. They drink the nectar from the flowers and they'll also sip nectar from special feeders filled with a sugar solution that you can make from a special powder or on your own. Orioles also eat nectar, but they like the colour orange and their feeders are larger than those made for hummingbirds. Orioles will often come to feast on orange halves that have been stuck on a branch. Nectar feeders must be kept very clean, and the liquid should be changed every two or three days. To make your own nectar, mix one cup of water and four tablespoons of granulated (white) sugar. Heat the water and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Let it cool and it's ready to serve.

• Cracked corn and grains. These items are the favourites of many ground-feeding birds, like doves and juncos, as well as large birds such as turkey and grouse. Wheat, rye, oats and corn are the sorts of grains birds enjoy.

Mammals like:

Naturally occurring foods:

• Bushes and shrubs with berries

• Fruit trees

• Nut trees 

• Some flowers 

• Weeds

• Seeds

• Long grasses, clover and other ground covers

• Bark

• Insects, grubs and worms

Foods you can provide:

Small mammals such as squirrels, chipmunks and other rodents will be amongst your best customers at the Wildlife Cafe. In colder weather, even rabbits and hares will browse under seed or grain feeders. Sometimes, larger mammals such as raccoons, deer and bears will come for a free meal too. Variety is an important part of every animal's dietary needs. At some times of they year, they'll require extra fat or protein. These are some of the things they'll appreciate:

• Sunflower seeds

• Peanuts, leftover baking nuts and even leftover Christmas nuts 

• Grains and seeds 

• Fruit, vegetables and berries

• Suet

• Small dog or cat kibble

• Rodent block or monkey chow

• In very cold and snowy winters, you can put out hay or straw for deer, moose and elk.

To feed or not to feed?

An important thing to consider when you start feeding wildlife is: how many animals can my yard support? It's not a good idea to overload any one area with too many animals because they'll need a variety of natural foods as well. Too many animals in one small area results in natural food sources disappearing, leaving the animals relying too heavily on human handouts. To ensure that you don't overpopulate the habitat, fill feeders no more than once a day.

Some people wonder if they should stop feeding during certain times of the year. We don't recommend it. Once you've started feeding wildlife, keep going. That's especially true in the winter when the animals really count on you for help. Your help can mean the difference between life and death for them. 

Would you like to like to extend your own invitation to nature? Build nest boxes or feeders, make ponds and find great recipes for wildlife at:

 http://birding.about.com/hobbies/pastimes/birding/msubmenu.htm
Learn to make bat houses at: http://www.batcon.org/bhra/bhcritter.html