Summer Fun: Create a Certified Wildlife Habitat in Your Backyard

The National Wildlife Federation (NWF) published an article in the April 1973 issue of National Wildlife magazine encouraging people to create natural landscapes that helped restore the ecological balance of our plants and wildlife. Decades of conventional landscaping, that is highly dependent on chemicals and supplemental watering, resulted in drastic reductions of natural habitats and the disappearance of many species of wildlife. Response to the article was so overwhelming, that the NWF began the Backyard Wildlife Habitat program to educate people in gardening for wildlife and to certify wildlife habitats that you create. The ultimate goal is to invite the wild plants and animals back into developed lands that we once shared and back into our lives.

The NWF marked their 70^th Anniversary in 2006 and to celebrate, the organization set a goal of 70,000 certified Backyard Wildlife Habitat sites in 2006. Not only did the NWF reach their goal, they surpassed it with more than 74,000 yards, schools, and communities certified by October with 12,000 in the last six months alone. The honorary 70,000^th Certified Habitat award went to Vanderbilt Children's Hospital in Nashville, Tennessee. The Backyard Habitat team and local volunteers created a habitat for wildlife on a sixth-floor balcony. The goal now is too reach 100,000 certified sites and it takes only four elements create your own: food, water, cover, and places to raise young.