But with the high cost of nursery stock, some may feel that they just can’t afford to plant and maintain a bird habitat on their property.

Here’s where Habitat Incentive Programs come in. What are they? They are programs that provide technical and/or financial assistance to landowners to create, enhance or maintain wildlife habitat on their lands. Many of these programs are government sponsored, a few are sponsored by environmentally aware private nurseries. 

While a few of the programs available may be better suited to owners of large tracts of open land, others may be suitable for backyard habitat projects.  

In December I began researching the availability of Habitat Incentive Programs in various states in the Eastern part of the US. Many of the responders invited me to contact the appropriate agency by telephone, others gave links to applicable websites. Below is a sampling of the information I was able to obtain from just a few inquiries.

New Hampshire:  The State Forest Nursery – sells a Songbird/wildlife package for $20.

New Jersey: The Fish and Wildlife Division of the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has two programs  that may be suitable for those with larger tracts of open land. The Landowner Incentive Program and the Habitat Incentive Program.

North Carolina:  - The State Division of Forest Resources carries two different Wildlife packages in their seedling catalog for $65 each. 

Louisiana: The Department of Agriculture and Forestry, Wildlife Division, offers packets of 25 assorted seedlings suitable for wildlife and habitat improvement for $20. At this link you can see prices, species available, and print order forms for seedling packets.  

Iowa: The Iowa Department of Natural Resources has packets available for Songbirds, Wildlife, Turkey, Pheasant, and Quail.  

New York: The Department of Environmental Conservation's website offers a program available through the Saratoga Tree Nursery, which has seedlings available in several species suitable for songbirds for $30/100 including the Eastern Red Cedar and Red Osier Dogwood from Bet’s list of desirable plantings for songbird habitats.

Ohio: While the Ohio Department of Natural Resources doesn't have any financial support programs, their website does have a number of informational pdf documents on Wildlife Habitat Management Plans, including a list of nurseries that carry plantings suitable for the creation of a backyard habitat. They also suggest contacting your county Soil & Water Conservation District to see if they carry low-cost packages for use in wildlife plantings. Look for the phone number for your Soil & Water Conservation District in the phone book under county government offices for your county. 

Some states referred me to the Federal USDA WHIP (Wildlife Habitat Incentive Program)  http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/programs/whip/ 

If your state is not one of those listed above, where can you go to get information or inquire about the availability of such programs? I found it useful to start with the State Department of Natural Resources (DNR) – Divisions of Forestry or Wildlife or State Environmental Protection agencies (EPA). There are several websites with links to these State agencies. Here are just a few:

http://www.creekbank.com/50states.html

http://www.butlerwebs.com/hunting/statelist.htm

http://www.epa.gov/epahome/state.htm 

Or, if you’re more comfortable making an inquiry by phone, look in your local directory under the State Government listings. Look for the Natural Resources, Environmental Protection or Environmental Conservation Departments. In addition, many county governments have Environmental, Conservation, Wildlife, or Forestry bureaus, and may be helpful in providing information on programs available to you locally. 

What if you can’t find a Habitat Incentive program in your area, or the programs available in your area are not appropriate for your individual needs? Contact a neighboring state to see if they will offer their packages to out-of-state residents. Better yet, talk with your state’s appropriate department and suggest instituting a program. Talk with others in your area that would be interested in participating, and have them contact the department, as well. Some agencies might be willing to institute programs for backyard habitat creation if they know there is an interest. 

Remember, as Audubon says, “Start small, but think big”. 

For more suggestions on what you can do personally to help our wild birds, see Audubon’s full State of the Birds Report.

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OFFER EXPIRED

In 2004, the Bluebird Gift Shop teamed up with Dave Magness of Jennabird for a special campaign called "Help the Hurricane-Homeless Blues". BluebirdNut produced a beautiful 2005 Bluebird Wall Calendar, the proceeds from which went to ship nestbox kits, donated by Jennabird, to areas that lost nestboxes to the 2004 hurricanes in the southern US. As a result of your purchases of the 2005 Bluebird Calendar, nestbox kits are being sent to the storm-ravaged areas of Florida to assist in the trail rebuilding efforts there. Thanks to all who participated in this campaign. Upcoming issues of the Bluebird Newsletter will include updates on the exact number of nestbox kits we were able to send. We also hope to give you some news from the Bluebird Trails which benefited from your generosity.

Encouraged by the success of the "Help the Hurricane Homeless Blues" Calendar Project, the Bluebird Gift Shop will continue its efforts to assist with Bluebird Trail re-building efforts throughout the coming year.

Now that the prime season for calendar sales is almost over, we've made an alteration in our donation structure which we hope will help to raise even more funds, while offering our customers a wider variety of items that will all contribute to the cause. For 2005, 10% of the net proceeds from the sale of ALL items from The Bluebird Gift Shop will be donated to Bluebird Trail projects throughout the country.  To begin with, we will still be concentrating our efforts on rebuilding the Bluebird trails in Florida. Once our friends in Florida inform us that their trails are back to what they were before the hurricane season of 2004, we will turn our attention to other trails in need of assistance. That's where we need feedback from our visitors.

We are asking that you inform us by e-mail of any Bluebird Trails that have been damaged or destroyed by weather-related incidents, acts of vandalism, or that have otherwise fallen victim to unfortunate circumstances. We will consider their needs, and do our best to help in whatever way we can. We'll give periodic updates in the Bluebird Newsletter on the individual projects we're involved in.

by Bet Zimmerman

Because of their beauty, cheerful song, and springtime activity, bluebirds have come to symbolize happiness, love and renewed hope.

In 1859, Henry David Thoreau wrote “His soft warble melts the ear, as the snow is melting in the valleys around.” Throughout history, bluebirds have appeared in numerous stories, poems, art and films. Songs that feature the bluebird include “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” (1939). A bluebird flits about in the 1946 Disney film “Song of the South.” Ironically by that time bluebird populations were already dwindling.

When the first settlers arrived from England, bluebirds were probably as common as the American Robin. But bluebirds suffered a major decline from the 1920’s to the 1970’s. Just a few decades ago, many people under the age of 40 had never seen a bluebird.

Like most birds, the bluebird population depends in part on predators, the weather, and the availability of food. It is also directed affected by the availability of and competition for nest sites. With only one exception (severe weather), changes in bluebird populations have been directly correlated with human activities.

Clearing of forests and fields for timber and farming probably increased bluebird habitat. In the days before pesticides, farmers recognized that bluebirds ate insects but not crops. The 1884 Peoples Cyclopedia of Universal Knowledge noted that " Few American farmers fail to provide a box for the bluebirds nest."

The introduction of the house (English) sparrow in the 1850’s, and then of the European starling in the 1890’s would prove devastating to bluebird populations. These hardy, aggressive and prolific aliens made it almost impossible for bluebirds to nest successfully in areas where they were abundant.

In the latter part of the 1900’s, pesticide use began and increased. Open space was lost to urban sprawl and commercial development. Wooden fence posts formerly used by bluebirds were replaced with metal posts. Dead branches and trees that provided natural nesting cavities were removed. All of these changes impacted bluebird populations.

Most of us think that bluebird conservation started in the late 1970’s, after the publication of Rachel Carson’s A Silent Spring, and Larry Zeleny’s articles in National Geographic, his book The Bluebird – How You Can Help Its Fight for Survival, and formation of the North American Bluebird Society (NABS.) But in reality, Thomas Musselman was already establishing bluebird trails in 1926. A number of conservation pioneers and citizen scientists across the continent recognized that bluebird numbers were dwindling, and followed suit.

Today, bluebirds are found in areas where they had not been seen for a quarter of a century. The most significant factor in the recent population recovery is volunteerism - by young and old - people like you - doing their part by putting up and monitoring nestboxes, spreading the word, and encouraging others to get involved. Thanks to their efforts to educate, persuade, and enlighten, the eastern bluebird population has gradually started to increase again. Note that for some reason, the western bluebird has not enjoyed such a recovery.

Bluebird conservation is a shining example of the power of individuals and groups to make a difference. However, bluebird nestboxes and trails must be monitored or maintained, lest they disintegrate and become house sparrow slums, or expose bluebirds to predators and inclement weather. If this is to be a living history, ongoing efforts are needed from people like you who are committed to bluebird conservation and restoring some balance to our shared ecosystem.

The full version of this article-in-progress can be read at http://www.sialis.org/history.htm. Thanks to Bet for sharing this shortened version with us.
 

We had 12 responses, six negatives and six positives.  Here is a summary of where the responses came from: