Care 
for our local environment and
Live in Harmony with Nature
Certify your backyard by providing these elements:
1. Food
Your habitat needs three of the following: Seeds from a plant Berries Nectar Nuts Fruits Sap Pollen Suet Bird Feeder Squirrel Feeder Hummingbird Feeder Butterfly Feeder
"Restoring habitats where commercial and residential development have degraded natural ecosystems, can be your
way of giving back to wildlife."
2.
Water
Your
habitat needs one of the
following sources of clean water for wildlife to drink and bathe: Birdbath Lake Stream Seasonal Pool
Ocean Water Garden/Pond River Butterfly Puddling
Area
"Wildlife needs sources of clean water for many purposes,
3. Cover 
and Shelter
Wildlife
needs at least two places to
find shelter from the weather and predators: Wooded Area Bramble Patch
Ground Cover Rock Pile or Wall Cave Roosting Box Dense Shrubs or
Thicket Evergreens Brush or Log Pile Burrow Meadow or Prairie
"Providing places of
cover not only help wildlife feel safe from people and predators, it can also
help your overall garden if you "branch out" to attract other helpful
pollinators, such as bats or bees."
4.
Places 
to Raise Young
You
need at least two places for
wildlife to engage in courtship behavior, mate, and raise their young: Mature
Trees Meadow or Prairie Nesting Box Wetland Cave Host Plants for
Caterpillars Dead Trees or Snags Dense Shrubs or a Thicket Water Garden
or Pond Burrow
"Creating a wildlife habitat is about creating a place for the entire
life-cycle of a species to occur."
5. Sustainable 
Gardening
You
should be doing two things to
help manage your habitat:
Soil and Water Conservation: Riparian
Buffer Capture Rain Water from Roof Xeriscape
(water-wise landscaping) Drip or Soaker Hose for Irrigation Limit Water Use
Reduce Erosion (i.e. ground cover, terraces) Use Mulch Rain Garden
Controlling
Exotic Species: Practice Integrated Pest Management Remove
Non-Native Plants and Animals Use Native Plants Reduce Lawn Areas
Organic
Practices: Eliminate Chemical Pesticides Eliminate Chemical
Fertilizers Compost
"Replacing
grass lawns with native wildflowers, shrubs, and trees will increase the beauty
of your property and provide a nurturing refuge for wildlife. How you manage your
garden can have an effect on the health of the soil, air, water and habitat for
native wildlife - as well as the human community."
Certification
When 
you certify with your application and fee of $20,
you'll receive all these great benefits: (Certify online at:http://www.nwf.org/gardenforwildlife/certify.cfm)
A personalized certificate that recognizes your NWF Certified Wildlife Habitat.
A free NWF membership which includes a full year's subscription to the award-winning National Wildlifeฎ magazine.
A free subscription to the quarterly e-newsletter, Habitats, full of insightful tips and information on gardening and attracting wildlife year after year.
Your name listed in NWF's National registry, and
You can also buy
a sign ($25) to post on your habitat, making a statement in support of
productive and diverse habitat.
For a Certification Package, more Information, or to volunteer:
Whidbey Island
Wildlife Habitat Project
http://whidbeywildlifehabitat.com
360-632-3406
Thank you to our partner organizations:
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