Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
trails, playgrounds, and community gathering sites. In so doing, designed
open space conserves wildlife, fosters community, and reduces the demand for
private lawn space.
As I walk from my home to visit Kathy Wilson's backyard sanctuary,
I pass through two neighborhoods built a decade ago. One is a traditional
design, the other a conservation design. Each harbors a rich birdlife, exceed-
ing that found in a nearby 150-acre forest. I see benei ts for certain species in
each design. Woodland species thrive in the conservation neighborhood,
whereas a few species that forage on lawns l ock to the traditional site. Al-
though the number of types of birds has remained constant over the decade
during which I surveyed the traditional neighborhood, diversity has steadily
climbed in the conservation neighborhood. There, I actually encountered
eight more species in 2010 than in 1998 when the site was entirely forest (an
increase of 30 percent). What's more important is that nearly every sensitive
forest species remains. Many species that require substantial prey or dead
trees, such as Cooper's hawks and pileated woodpeckers, nest successfully.
Such is not the case in the traditional neighborhood, where large lawns have
replaced most of the former forest. A 2008 study suggests that the residents
of the conservation-design neighborhood are also more satisi ed, active, and
rewarded with steadily rising home values than are those in the traditional
neighborhood.
Encouraging the vegetation that birds and other wildlife require is a huge,
but i rst, step in enabling subirdia to retain its riches. By increasing the diver-
sity of plants in our neighborhoods, we can all increase the variety and health
of wildlife that tolerates our presence. Providing shrubs and trees, especially
native species that of er the nectar, nuts, berries, insects, and fruits that native
animals desire, increases food resources. Thickets, brush piles, rocks, stand-
ing dead trees, and logs contribute cover from predators and safe nest and
roost sites. With these basic elements present, we can now concern ourselves
