GREEN MAP
Land: Habitat
- Fort Whyte Alive Backyard Biodiversity Program
“FortWhyte Alive is dedicated to providing programming, natural settings and facilities for environmental education and outdoor recreation. In so doing, Fort Whyte promotes awareness and understanding of the natural world and actions leading to sustainable living” (Fort Whyte Alive, ND). The backyard biodiversity program is just one of many such programs at Fort Whyte. It provides information for homeowners on how to transform their yards into wildlife habitat. It emphasizes not only the ecological benefits of creating wildlife habitat in your yard, but also the aesthetic benefits such as brightly coloured native flowers, the enjoyment of being able to observe wildlife, and the sense of discovery this provides. The backyard biodiversity program provides information on how to increase the biodiversity of your yard by providing habitat requirements for wildlife: shelter, food, and water. This program has been running more than five years and is free and open to anyone.
Habitat Elements
think structural diversity
Shelter
A shelter can provide a safe place for wildlife to hide from predators, take cover from the elements, or raise the family. An area with a variety of layers will suit more species as different animals prefer different types of shelter. Thickets, dense shrub-like vegetation, make an excellent shelter for birds and small mammals and can be used to fill spaces in your yard such as corners and edges (Backyard Biodiversity Bulletin). Rock piles and mossy logs can provide a safe haven form many reptiles, amphibians and insects. For example, a mossy log will provide moisture and shade for salamanders. Trees offer homes to insects and perches for nesting and sheltering birds. Nesting boxes for birds, bat boxes, providing a shelf under the eaves for Robins, and filling a mesh bag with nesting materials such as animal hair, yarn and lint, will help provide additional shelter (Backyard Biodiversity Bulletin).
think seasonally
Food
By carefully selecting a variety of native vegetation, such as grasses, flowers, shrubs and trees, you can provide food for many animals throughout most of the year (Backyard Biodiversity Bulletin). Plants will need to provide different food sources for different wildlife. Some insects and birds like butterflies and hummingbirds will feed off nectar, other birds or small mammals may feed off nuts and seeds, while other wildlife may feed off pollen, leaves or fruit. Plant native shrubs that bloom in the spring for pollen feeders, nectar producing flowers or hand a nectar feeder, let leaf litter accumulate under shrubs and trees insects and for birds which eat insects, and plant native vegetation that produces fall and winter berries (Backyard Biodiversity Bulletin). You can also enhance natural food supplies with feeders. Winter feeders with black oil sunflower seeds are a favourite with many birds (Backyard Biodiversity Bulletin).
think wet
Water
“Providing clean water is one of the most important things you can do to attract and sustain wildlife” (Backyard Biodiversity Bulletin). Clean water is hard to find in cities. As precipitation falls and travels over the landscape it collects pollutants such as oil, pesticides, and salt, and is rapidly collected and carried away by our sewer systems. There are a number of ways that you can provide water for wildlife. Provide a shallow bird bath, leave a dish of fresh water, construct a pond for fish, amphibians and insects, and provide a soggy spot for butterflies (Backyard Biodiversity Bulletin).
Fort Whyte Alive Interpretive Centre
Structural diversity. Canopy, understory, and groundlevel plants. Source: Backyard Biodiversity Bulletin, Fort Whyte Centre
Thicket with shrubs of varied height. Source: Backyard Biodiversity Bulletin, Fort Whyte Centre
Robin feeding in Mountain Ash tree. Source: Manitoba Conservation, p. 107 in Naturescape Manitoba
Backyard Pond. Source: C. Thomsen, p.14, in Naturescape Manitoba