Let’s Make Baltimore the Largest Community Wildlife Habitat along the Chesapeake Bay!

For years, Baltimore has been known as “Birdland” and now, thanks to the National Wildlife Federation (NWF) and the National Aquarium, it’s official. Today, First Lady of Maryland Katie O’Malley joined leaders from NWF, National Aquarium and city officials to launch a program aimed at greening city streets, backyards, schools and places of worship.

First Lady Katie O’Malley speaking about the importance of “greening” Baltimore.

“We believe that your backyard can be a place for exploring and unleashing children’s curiosity,” said Hilary Harp Falk, Regional Executive Director for National Wildlife Federation.  “Baltimore has always been a city for the birds, and we intend to work with partners in the City to create beautiful places which will offer opportunities to learn, connect and play.”

By greening the city for birds, butterflies and other wildlife, residents of Baltimore will also help to improve both air and water quality for humans. The more native plantings that are used to attract wildlife, the greater potential the city has of reaching its Healthy Harbor goals and helping to clean the Chesapeake Bay.

“As a conservation organization it is our goal to inspire people to do their part, starting here in our backyard of Baltimore and the Chesapeake Bay,” said John Racanelli, National Aquarium CEO. “We are dedicated to a Healthy Harbor and we believe that can happen if we all get involved in the greening of our city.”

Did you know? Our Waterfront park is a certified wildlife habitat!

Community Wildlife Habitat certification will bring many organizations and individuals together to work on a common vision, and, when successful, Baltimore will achieve certification for more than 600 homes, 10 parks, and 6 schools and be recognized as one of the 60+ Community Wildlife Habitats nationwide!

In celebration of the National Wildlife Federation’s Garden for Wildlife month in May, people across the country – from bird watchers to butterfly lovers – are joining the residents of Baltimore in transforming their gardens into havens for wildlife.  The National Wildlife Federation has also pledged to plant a tree for every Certified Wildlife Habitat during the month of May to honor its garden supporters! 

May is Garden for Wildlife Month!

Our partners at the National Wildlife Federation (NWF) have designated May “Garden for Wildlife month!”

This month’s warm weather is perfect for getting out there and sprucing up your home or community garden! NWF’s Certified Wildlife Habitat program makes it easy to ensure that your efforts are supporting local wildlife and helping to restore habitats in commercial and residential areas.

Our Waterfront park is a certified wildlife habitat!

How to create a wildlife-friendly environment: 

1. Provide food - Planting native shrubs and trees is the easiest way to provide the foliage, nectar, pollen, berries, seeds and nuts that many species need to survive! 
2. Provide water – Animals also need clean water sources to drink and bathe! Give them a helping hand by including a rain garden or bird bath in your garden.
3. Provide shelter – Local wildlife needs shelter from bad weather and predators. Shelter created by native plants and shrubs can also double as a great place for animals to  raise their offspring!
4. Get certified! – Show others in your community that your yard is beautifully done AND helping to support the environment!

So, ready to get gardening? Share photos of your wildlife habitat with us using #Garden4Wildlife!

Arbor Day: Doing Our Part Right in the Inner Harbor

Did you know? National Aquarium’s Waterfront Park is populated entirely with plants native to Maryland!

Our goal in maintaining the park, the organization of which follows the principles of conservation landscaping (also known as Bayscaping), is to reduce the impact of pollution felt downtown and improve the health of our local ecosystem.

Here in the city, the trees and other plants of the Waterfront Park provide habitat and refuge for local and migratory birds, insects and other animals that either live in Baltimore permanently or are just passing through. In our Appalachian Highlands planter, we have a variety of trees and shrubs: Red Cedar, Redbud, White Pine, Sassafrass, White Oak, Chestnut Oak, Witch Hazel, Fragrant Sumac, Flowering Dogwood and Red-Panicled Dogwood that provide critical food and shelter for wildlife.

A bloom from one of our dogwood trees.

The Piedmont planter is dominated by Red Maple, but also includes such trees and shrubs such as Sweetbay Magnolia, Southern and Maple-Leaved Arrowwood, and Serviceberry. Our Coastal Forest planter is home to Loblolly Pine, Marsh Elder, and Inkberry, and in our Salt Marsh planters can be found more Marsh Elder, Groundsel Bush, Swamp Hibiscus and Winterberry. Many of the trees and shrubs on the Plaza produce fruit and berries that are enjoyed throughout the year by birds, including the Serviceberry, Red Chokecherry, Fragrant Sumac, Inkberry and Winterberry. The foliage of these trees provides an environment in which native birds can nest and rear their young.

Our park is a certified wildlife habitat.

Many of the flowering trees and plants also provide pollen and nectar through the growing seasons for various pollinating birds and insects, and the foliage of many trees is a valuable food source for the larvae of various butterflies and moths. The “leaf litter” underneath the trees generated by years of deciduous accumulation also supports a vast array of insects, spiders and other arthropods. The insects supported here are also a useful food source for the birds and bats that live in and pass through our city!

This thriving environment of native plants has evolved immensely in recent years to support a growing number of native animal wildlife. We hope the community here in Baltimore city can continue to enjoy it for many years to come!

John Seyjagat, the Curator of our Animal Planet Australia exhibit, also manages the development and maintenance of our exterior parks. To learn more about John, click below: 

Re-Cap: Eastern Neck Tree Planting!

Last weekend, our Aquarium Conservation Team (ACT!) hosted a tree planting event at Eastern Neck National Wildlife Refuge. Eastern Neck is a 2,285-acre stopover area for migratory and wintering waterfowl at the mouth of the Chester River on Maryland’s Eastern Shore.

Funded through the US Fish and Wildlife Foundation, Chesapeake Bay Trust, and National Wildlife Federation, community volunteers, students and partners planted 15,000 native hardwood trees creating a 300 foot forest buffer along the river. Since 2000, we have restored more than 12 acres of wetland habitat, demonstrating the beneficial use of dredge material. The wetlands provide refuge to a variety of wildlife including terrapins, birds, snakes and small mammals.

In total, 80 students from Rock Hall Elementary, Kent County High School and Aquarium On Wheels (an after school program for Baltimore City Youth) participated alongside 18 Maryland Conservation Corps, 19 Aquarium Conservation Team and 36 community volunteers. Our planting project at Eastern Neck is part of a larger initiative to educate local school children on the importance of marsh habitat around the Chesapeake Bay using these restored wetlands as a living classroom.

US Fish and Wildlife Staff will continue to monitor trees over the next several years to assure success of the newly-planted seedlings!

Want to get out in the field and give back to our local wildlife? Join us at our of our upcoming conservation events! 

Guest Post: NWF Wildlife Week Celebrates Trees, Wildlife and Water

Today’s post comes from Kevin Coyle, Vice President, Education & Training at National Wildlife Federation (NWF). This year, NWF’s Wildlife Week, March 18-24, celebrates trees and their importance to wildlife and people! 

March 18 to 24 is National Wildlife Week. And, this year, we are focusing on the importance of trees to wildlife and water. Our 2013 theme is “branching out for wildlife” and anyone interested in learning about trees, tree planting or wildlife should visit us online. We are often asked why trees are so important for wildlife and water. There are at least five compelling reasons:

Trees consume water and can regulate stream flows
Urban areas experience increasing amounts of paving and land development that convert large areas of spongy natural land to hard surfaces that cannot absorb water. When rain hits paved-over or built-over areas, it runs off directly into storm drains and eventually into area streams and rivers. A hard, fast rain, with no vegetation or natural land to slow it down can hit these water bodies with such speed and force that it will result in flooding and severe erosion problems. Downstream areas such as bays and estuaries can get deadly slugs of sediment and chemical pollution from these run-off surges.

Anyone who has stood under a tree at the beginning of a rain shower (not advisable in lighting storms) knows that tree canopy absorbs falling rain. In urban areas this can reduce water run-off by as much as 10 percent and that can make a huge difference in the speed and erosive force of the rain shower. That is one reason trees are increasingly becoming a standard design feature for automobile parking lots which, left uncovered, are huge run-off generators. These same parking lots also heat up on hot summer days and contribute to spikes in temperatures know as “heat islands.” Tree canopy is an effective coolant in these areas and that is likewise good for local wildlife and water.

Trees also need water to grow and can help consume excess water in urban areas. Urban planners and designers are paying more and attention to filling remaining “plantable” spaces in cities and suburbs with trees. The recent trend of planting areas called “rain gardens” in parking lots and other developed areas that are specifically designed to capture rain water and help it percolate into the ground. This absorption is facilitated by tree planting.

Trees remove pollutants from the air and water
The science is also clear that trees and wooded areas help to filter pollutants out of the environment and can keep air and water cleaner. They cut down on sediment running into streams, rivers and bays and they also absorb chemical pesticides, and heavy metals, such as cadmium, that can be devastating to water quality, fisheries and wildlife.

Trees can serve as anchors to stream-side habitat areas
The term “riparian area” may not be front of mind for most people but such an area is the (usually narrow) zone of stream-side vegetation that follows the stream and occupies the space between the water and dry land. Because of differences in soils and the amount of moisture they hold, these transitional zone have many unique characteristics.

In some farming and dry land regions riparian areas are the only places where trees are found. The trees there are playing an important role by stabilizing soils, cooling the water, dropping food and nutrients into the stream and providing moist environments for a wealth of native plants in the under-story  These vegetative zones help to keep streams cleaner and they literally absorb and slow down food waters. In many parts of the nation, such as in the West, wooded riparian areas support as many as 70 percent of local species. They are vitally important to birds, insects, mammals, amphibians and many other creatures and when they are cleared for farming, development or just improved views of the stream, wildlife diversity drops sharply. Likewise, tree planting becomes an important first to restore degraded riparian zones.

Trees provide resting places during migration
Resident wildlife species certainly need trees but they are also important for our migrating visitors. Birds and insect species traveling over great distances need wooded areas to rest and refuel on their long journeys. Central Park in New York City is famous for being an area that attracts an unbelievable diversity of bird species despite being surrounded by skyscrapers and America’s most dense urban environment. One study in the United Kingdom found that even a small area of an acre can be vitally important to migrating species in need of a little rest.

Trees, living and dead, are great for food and habitat
There are several fallen trees right outside the windows of the National Wildlife Federation HQ in Reston, Virginia. In February of this year, a staff meeting was put on pause so we could observe a beautiful pair of pileated woodpeckers driving holes into the logs and feeding on the insects inside. Live trees offer creatures important habitat for sure but dead trees are important too because they provide food, holes and cavities for nests and shelter. In the eastern forests, for example, a combination of shelter and food from living trees such as an abundant acorn crop combined with rotting trees and snags on the forest floor can provide an unbeatable safety net of support to wildlife species throughout the food web.

National Wildlife Federation is honored to be affiliated with National Aquarium. Our reasons for joining forces include the protection of the Chesapeake Bay and other coastal areas. Forested areas, large and small, are vital to that goal!

Join us this year in celebrating National Wildlife Week and supporting nation-wide tree planting programs!