Distinctly Montana Magazine

W W W. D I S T I N C T LY M O N TA N A . C O M 27 eir strategy? Call it, "Plant it, and birds will come." Schmetterling and Marler are among the growing number of Montanans discovering the value of "birdscaping" — creating a res- idential landscape that attracts birds. e idea has been cultivated over the past few decades by bird-lovers across the United States. A naturally landscaped yard can attract dozens of bird species. e right flowers provide nectar for hummingbirds. Insects that live on native landscaping draw warblers that would never touch a feeder. What's more, birds often linger in a birdscaped yard. e right shrubs and trees provide shelter from weather and predators, and even provide nesting sites. Include a birdbath, and such a yard serves up everything birds need to thrive — cover, food, water, and nesting places. Native plants provide the key. After all, Montana birds have long thrived on local plants. Native vegetation survives Montana's tem- peratures and provides a succession of foods to get birds through the year. What's more, these plants need no special watering or fertilizing. Another benefit, say Marler and Schmetterling, is that surrounding their home with plant species native only to the sur- rounding wildlands restores a sense of what Schmetterling calls "regional distinctiveness" to their property. "We like having plants that are from here and in many cases are found nowhere else," he says. When it comes to birds, having bugs around is great. Baby birds especially need insects to survive. But most foreign plants found at garden centers are unfriendly to native bugs. Douglas Tallamy, professor of entomology at the University of Delaware and author of Bringing Nature Home: How Native Plants Sustain Wildlife in Our Gardens, writes that the alien ornamentals that dominate most yards produce physical and chemical defenses that native insects can't handle. e bugs die or move elsewhere, forcing birds to move on, too. D avid Schmetterling and Marilyn Marler live in the middle of Missoula on an average city lot. You'd think such a location wouldn't be a birding hotspot, yet over the past several years the couple has identified more than 50 different bird species attracted to their yard. Native plants bring butterflies as well as birds. Pelidne sulphur rests on a golden currant. CONTINUED

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