To add to what David wrote, we can improve cities for "wildlife" just be
not being so damned tidy!

I took my vertebrate class for a walk in Tacoma adjacent to the UPS campus
last year, to try to find some vertebrates, and I realized after walking
for a few blocks that not only do we destroy the original habitat, we make
little effort to replace it. In fact, we make a rather substantial effort
to turn our yards into virtual *deserts*--lush green rhododendrons and
well-watered lawns notwithstanding.

Everywhere I looked, there wasn't a trace of a weed. The yard freaks were
doing their jobs, out weekly (daily?) with mowers and edgers, leaving not
an unkempt leaf or stem in sight. Hedges neatly trimmed, everything
weeded--you've got the picture. At all costs, keep life (biodiversity) out
of the yard!

How can we possibly expect seed-eating birds in our cities when we refuse
to permit seed-bearing plants to be present? The plants that bear small
seeds are mostly annuals, and mostly weeds; how many cultivated shrubs have
seeds that a finch would eat? How many garden flowers are allowed to go to
seed (yuk, ugly)? And heaven forbid that a WEED SEED HEAD appear in the
lawn. So of course we have to have bird feeders to take the place of what
comes naturally. Just this summer we stopped mowing half of our lawn. Now
we just mow a path through the back part, where we've planted all the trees
and shrubs, to allow access. Every day we see seed-eaters (for better or
worse, they are mostly House Sparrows, but there are also House Finches,
siskins, and towhees) feeding on *real* (not out of a bag) seeds in this
unkempt kneehigh grass and weed jungle.

How can we possibly expect insect-eating birds in our cities when we not
only spray to prevent insect damage but we choose plants that are insect
resistant? Most of the shrubs used in landscaping are evergreens, and most
are little bothered by insect pests. Guess what that means for
insect-eating birds? So far, we haven't come up with insect feeders to
which these birds would flock (we should; it's a great idea). I have
purposely put in all the trees and shrubs I can think of that are known to
be *attractive* to insects--willows, birches, legumes, and members of the
rose family (cherry, hawthorn, etc.). When I see leaves riddled with
insect damage, I know there's something there to gladden the heart of a
chickadee or warbler.

So to me, it's not so much a choice of planting native or introduced
species but a choice between tolerating nature and condemning it!

Dennis Paulson, Director phone 206-756-3798
Slater Museum of Natural History fax 206-756-3352
University of Puget Sound e-mail dpaulson at ups.edu
Tacoma, WA 98416