Creating a wildlife-friendly garden
Native birds are being encouraged to return to suburban gardens through a number of different initiatives: the creation of ‘mainland islands' - areas of bush protected from predators, conservation projects like ours, greater use of native plant species by home gardeners over the last couple of decades.
Planning a garden to attract and support kerer? and other birds is not difficult. KDP partner Karori Wildlife Sanctuary is one example of a mainland island. Inside its predator-proof boundary fence, food resources are regenerating and thriving. Within a few years, populations of native birds like t?? and bellbird have proliferated, and now birds venture over the borders to forage in surrounding suburbs.
In the suburbs that receive these wanderers, home owners can modify their gardens to include more leaf litter, food-producing local species, and other resources.
Planning guides to assist gardeners with this process already exist. Some good ones available online are on the Department of Conservation, Greater Wellington Regional Council (Wellington-specific information) and NZ Ecological Restoration Network websites. These typically focus on suggesting appropriate native plant species, with the aesthetics of the plan left to you. Following their advice will quickly reward you with an abundance of species.
Even if you prefer another gardening style, it is still easy to provide habitat for wildlife, as long as some general rules are followed. The guidelines below will help you to recreate birds' natural habitat conditions as far as possible, and they give plenty of scope for creativity in how you apply them.
 | Playing Urban Jungle will give you a good idea of how to manage your garden to support kerer? |
