Sustainable Habitats for Backyard Wildlife - Green Living Toolkit (2024)

Step 1

Provide Basic Wildlife Needs

Cost: Free or Variable

Go Native

One of the best ways to support native Florida wildlife in your yard is by adding native plants that provide shelter and food. Want more Butterflies, Birds, or Pollinators? There’s a Florida native plant for that! On the flipside, review these mugshots of common invasive plants, and if you recognize any in your yard, consider removing them as you transition your yard to native plants.

Caring for your existing trees, especially mangroves, and maintaining natural vegetated shorelines on ponds and bayfronts greatly enhances backyard wildlife watching.

Creating layers or varying the height of vegetation adds more area for feeding, hiding, and raising young. Leaving dead trees or brush piles in place, where safely possible, also provides habitat for birds to perch or nest. Plants that produce seeds, nuts, fruit, edible foliage, and flowers can provide food for a variety of wildlife, and for bugs and critters that are eaten by wildlife. Plus, since native landscapes tend to need less care once established, you save on water, fertilizer, pesticides, and energy bills.

• A Step-by-Step Guide to a Florida Native Yard walks you through the process and is available at the library or online
• Search for plants suited to your zip code and site conditions and find native plant nurseries at Plant Real Florida and the Florida Native Plant Society

WATCH: Gardening For Birds with Laurel and Annie Schiller at Florida Native Plants Nursery.

Did you know? Florida has over 320 bee species, including 29 found nowhere else in the world! Unlike the non-native honeybees that live in hives, most Florida native bees live solitary lives and are threatened by loss of habitat. Learn More about gardening to help native bees.

Wet Their Whistle

Wildlife require water for drinking and bathing. Provide a clean water source such as a rain gardenor bird bath. Ideally, the water container should be flat with a gentle slope and no more than two inches deep. Add a stone to the center of the bath as a perch and locate it in an area where birds can scan for predators before approaching, such as near a tree or fence. Refresh the water daily to keep it clean.

Pro-Tip: Moving water attracts more birds, so add a circulating pump or a dripper.

Build A House

For some species, natural cavities for nesting and resting are usually in shorter supply than food or water. Manmade boxes built to the right size, shape, and color can help support birds, owls, or bats in your yard.

Bats can be a beneficial addition to the wildlife community in your yard because they eat insects—lots of them! Step-by-Step Guide to building and locating a BatBnB or you can buy one built to the right size and color specs.

Owls like the Eastern Screech-Owl, Barn Owl, and Barred Owl may make their home in your yard if you provide a suitable nesting site. Step-by-step Guide to attracting owls and keeping them safe. Each owl species has their own design preferences. Build the right box for the right owl or buy an owl box with right size specs.

Bird species that nest in cavities have fairly specific preferences for habitats and nestbox dimensions, though not all of Florida’s 25 cavity-nesting bird species will readily use a bird house. Step-by-Step Guide to selecting and building the right house for the right bird, or buy one built to the right specs for the type of bird you want to host.

Step 2

Provide Peace and Quiet

Cost: Free or Variable

Lights Out for Wildlife

Wildlife has evolved and adapted to regular light and dark cycles that coincide with the days and seasons. Almost 70% of mammals are nocturnal, and that count is rising as animals try to avoid human contact by working the night shift. Artificial light disrupts these cycles and can alter wildlife behavior—attracting or repelling certain animals, changing sleep patterns, and affecting reproductive cycles. Learn more about how artificial light impacts specific groups of animals.

When outdoor light is necessary:

• Mount light fixtures as low to the ground as possible
• Direct and shield lamps to reduce glare (examples)
• Choose warm color (amber and red) LED bulbs less than 2700 Kelvin
• Connect the light to a timer or motion sensor

Nix The Noise

Many wildlife species rely on sound to communicate, find mates, detect predators, protect young, and find food. Constant human noise interferes with these processes and can reduce the survival and health of our local wildlife with symptoms resembling PTSD.

Reduce your backyard noise:

• When possible, use non-motorized tools for yard work. Bonus: Get a workout!
• Consider purchasing electric yard equipment rather than gas powered. Bonus: Reduce air pollution!
• Keep outdoor music and voices to conversation levels.

Cut the Chemicals

If a household chemical is harmful for you to touch or swallow, it’s likely harmful to wildlife. Herbicides, pesticides, and outdoor cleaners can persist in the environment and directly or indirectly harm wildlife. In particular, rat poison kills slowly, so rodents (or any animal that eats the poison) keep eating long after they’ve ingested a lethal dose. The poisoned rat stumbles around for a few days, making it easy prey for all manner of birds and mammals—and pets—who then suffer secondary poisoning. Learn more about poisons and their non-toxic alternatives, like providing barn owl nesting boxesto let the owls do the job!

The saying, “you can’t pick your neighbors,” sometimes extends to wildlife as well. Food is food and may attract an unintended guest or a predator of your beloved backyard birds. The good news is that the presence of predators means you’ve created a healthy food web. The occasional visit by a raccoon, bear, or coyote is ok, but if they are coming around regularly, you may need to better secure whatever is attracting them. For example, bird feeders should not be close to the ground or attached to anything that provides easy access to uninvited animals. Harvesting garden foods as soon as they are ripe or using scare tactics like motion sensor lights can help deter unwanted wildlife. If nothing seems to work and you continue to have a visitor who could cause property damage or become a public safety hazard, there are options for live trapping and removal.

Ways to Support Local Wildlife

Your pets are not part of Florida’s natural ecosystem. Even though you may see your dog or cat as well behaved and harmless, many kinds of wildlife can be put at risk if an overly friendly dog or curious cat goes scampering off without any restraint. For example, unleashed dogs chasing nesting shorebirds can trample young chicks or cause parents to abandon their nests. According to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, “A single individual free-ranging cat may kill 100 or more birds and mammals per year.” Outdoor cats are also the primary host for transmitting toxoplasmosis to wildlife, a disease which has killed manatees and other mammals. Plus, waste deposited by free-ranging pets is not only harmful to wildlife and people, but it can degrade our water quality. Read more on reducing feral and domestic cat and wildlife interactions.

Easy Steps to Support Local Wildlife

• Do A Home Energy Assessment
• Give Your Home an Energy Tune-up
• Go Solar

• Grow A Food Garden
• Eat Local Sustainable Food
• Reduce Waste, Then Compost

• Reduce Single-Use Plastics
• Reuse, Repurpose, Restore
• Recycle Right

• Save Water Indoors
• Cut Water and Curb Pollution
• Be A Catalyst for Clean Water

• Get Out and Explore
• Keep Wildlife Safe
• Support Backyard Wildlife

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