Why Plant with Natives?
What is biodiversity and why is it important? Simply put, it is the variety of life on earth, but it is more complex too. It encompasses all levels of life from tiny to huge and specifically the processes that sustain life on earth.
Here are some facts about what we are losing:
Insect abundance is declining, estimated 40% of all insect species globally
The United States and Canada have lost more than 3 billion (yes BILLION) birds in the past 50 years.
More than one third of amphibian populations are globally threatened
Nearly 50% of our marine life populations are declining
Estimated declines in mammals are over 30%
We are losing our biodiversity and it’s not just the big charismatic animals, we are losing our bees and our dragonflies, our songbirds, and our frogs. We can do something about these local, smaller critters simply by providing habitat whether in small or large patches in our yards.
“In the past, we have asked one thing of our gardens: that they be pretty. Now they have to support life, sequester carbon, feed pollinators and manage water.”
— Doug Tallamy
Act Locally
There are many challenges to life on earth and we can donate to save wildlife or recycle our plastics to protect our oceans, reduce our water use, or ride our bicycles to minimize our carbon footprint.
We can also act within our yards and our gardens to plant natives!
Question
I don’t know where my nursery plants are from, but they are attractive, they are not invasive, and birds use their limbs. So, what’s the problem?
Answer
Although wildlife may be present and seem to use non-native plants, a deeper look will illustrate the danger of assuming that they actually support a healthy population of our wildlife. Insects are the base of the food chain, especially for our birds, and are specifically adapted to native plants with which they have evolved. Surveys of insects on native vs non-native trees (Tallamy in Bringing Nature Home) illustrates this disconnect. In our area, native oak trees are a critical plant for insects and provide an abundance of nutritious insects for our local birds.
Potential abundance of insects on native vs non-native trees
Carolina Chickadees need between 350 and 570 caterpillars each day (6,000 to 9,000 total) to raise a brood of youngsters
Insects like these also feed warblers, wrens, woodpeckers, bats, and other insectivores
Images from Dreamstime, chickadee 131432990, oak 147912305, crepe myrtle 224315577, insects 111455330
Native Plants: A definition
A plant is considered native if it has occurred naturally in a particular region, ecosystem, or habitat without human introduction. Native plants have formed symbiotic relationships with native wildlife over thousands of years, and therefore offer the most sustainable habitat.
Native plants help the environment the most when planted in places that match their growing requirements and exist with insects and other species adapted to benefit from your selected plants. They will thrive in the soils, moisture and weather of your region.
Exotic plants that evolved in other parts of the world or were cultivated by humans into forms that don't exist in nature do not support wildlife as well as native plants.
When animals and plants exist in the same space for millennia, complex and beautiful relationships develop through co-evolution. One example is the Monarch butterfly. This butterfly depends on their milkweed host plants to lay their eggs so the caterpillars can chew their way through the toxic leaves. Monarch caterpillars are evolved to be unfazed by the toxin, sequestering it in their bodies, but their predators are not.
Unfortunately, planting milkweeds in our area can do more harm than good, especially if purchased at a traditional nursery. Non-native milkweeds may continue to bloom through the migration season, delaying monarch’s usual migration and causing more susceptible to disease and winter cold. They may also be grown with insecticides which transfer to the caterpillars, and they may carry parasites that are spread by adult monarchs to infect the young.
There are many such stories from all over the globe but, near to us, the native Coontie supports a lovely herbivore, the Echo moth. Coonties are an ancient lineage of cycads that survived from the time of the dinosaurs and provided food to local indigenous populations in Florida, but they nearly became extinct through overharvest. Fortunately, the plant is seeing a rise in popularity due to its resilient nature and can certainly survive the care and feeding of any caterpillars that happen to spend their larval stage on its fronds.
What is a Wildlife Corridor?
Florida Wildlife Corridor Foundation is home to the collaborative conservation campaign to protect and restore Florida wildlife corridors.
How do I make a difference?
How do native plants in our yards make a difference? It’s a small piece of land in what looks like a sea of non-native, sparse landscapes. Most of us will need to start small – maybe a couple of planters or a corner of a yard that can be designated pollinator habitat, so the neighbors see what’s going on. By themselves, these seem small but, hopefully, will connect with other patches of native habitat. Please check out these local resources for native plants and information.
On a larger scale, we know that “Losing insect populations could be harmful not only to the natural environment, where insects often play key roles in local ecosystems, but it could also harm human health and food security, particularly with losses of pollinators,” said Charlie Outhwaite, lead author of the study and part of the UCL Centre for Biodiversity & Environment Research and Biosciences.
Our small native plantings can be a part of a much larger picture and allow wildlife (insects, birds, reptiles, amphibians, mammals) to move through the landscape and find necessary resources. When we gather and coordinate with our neighbors or plant our town parks and roadways, we broaden our impact by becoming a part of a wildlife corridor.
Florida Wildflower Foundation and Florida Department of Transportation work together on Regional Wildflower Alliances that are “active networks of wildflower enthusiasts that protect native wildflowers. Through communication, collaboration and information sharing, members support and inspire each other as they create knowledge and awareness of native wildflowers and their value to Florida’s environmental and economic health.” Your purchase of a Florida Wildlife license plate can help this effort.