Spring is magical. Not only are flowers and buds starting to pop out, but wildlife is too. All the animals that were somewhere in hiding, or maybe we didn’t see because it was always dark, are suddenly visible again. We’re seeing more hummingbirds at our feeder. The Canada Geese have taken over the yard and soon there will be little ones. Bunnies and squirrels are cohabitating in the yard, simultaneously running to hide when a coyote wanders through. Some years, even deer pass through, and on rare occasions we’ve seen a bobcat slink across the yard. Like much of the Pacific Northwest, development has changed habitat dramatically in our neighborhood, and we are seeing more small animals and fewer large ones. As wooded areas around us disappear, we are thinking about ways to create hiding spaces for ground-dwelling species, primarily the many rabbits who’ve made our yard home.
Whether you are interested in planting to nurture pollinators, want to create a forest habitat in your backyard, or just want to identify the wildlife you see at home or traveling, here are some books that should help.
- The Good Garden: How to Nurture Pollinators, Soil, Native Wildlife, and Healthy Food—All in Your own Backyard by Chris McLaughlin. Learn how even a little patch of earth can become a sanctuary for threatened wildlife, sequester carbon, and nurture native plants.
- How to Create a Wildlife Garden: Encouraging Birds, Bees, Butterflies and Bugs Into Your Outside Space by Christine Lavelle. The vast majority of garden creatures will not damage plants or be a nuisance, and will often make a meal of the hazardous critters. This book shows readers the best plants to grow where, and by encouraging natural gardening techniques for wildlife-friendly habitats, sets you on your first step in becoming a wildlife gardener.
- The Humane Gardener: Nurturing a Backyard Habitat for Wildlife by Nancy Lawson. Addresses planting for wildlife by choosing native species and providing habitats that shelter baby animals, as well as birds, bees, and butterflies.
- Backyard Wildlife by Todd Telander. A field guide to the most common species you can find in your very own backyard. Illustrations and detailed descriptions about each animal make it easy to identify each species. This is a full-color, visually appealing, on-the-go guide for identifying plants and animals and learning about nature.
- My Backyard Jungle: The Adventures of an Urban Wildlife Lover who Turned his Yard into Habitat and Learned to Live With it by James Barilla. The captivating story of an urban family who welcomes wildlife into their backyard and discovers the ups and downs of sharing habitat with creatures of all kinds.
Library tip of the month: Tax preparation assistance will be available at select FVRLibraries locations and other community sites through mid-April. Check our Tax Help page for hours and locations, or call 360-906-5000. Library locations have some common forms available and library staff can help you locate forms by name or number.
Janet Alder is Marketing and Communications Coordinator with Fort Vancouver Regional Libraries, which has 15 locations in Clark, Skamania, Klickitat, and Cowlitz Counties. Call 360-906-5000 or visit the library district website for more information.
A version of this column first appeared in The Messenger, March 2024.
Find more book columns in our Off the Shelf blog.
