I think my cats must have had power-sharing agreements with the local fauna because it’s not unusual to see wild critters in my backyard despite their feline presence. Photon once rescued a baby ‘possum, and has often shared the back stairs and a garden bench with a compost- and garden-raiding squirrel. When raccoons came in the backdoor – uninvited, the cats maintained a respectable distance until I could carefully shoo the indoor foragers away.

I’ve always thought the critters among us were plentiful and well-adapted to our urban environment. But flipping through the fall PAWS magazine, my eyes landed on a photo of a bushy-tailed squirrel. I noted the disconnect – when I think about PAWS, I think cats, not squirrels, so I read the blurb next to the photo. And then I did some research.

PAWS has an extensive wildlife rescue program. The paragraph next to the picture described the rescue and release of two orphaned Western Grey squirrels. According to PAWS and various urban wildlife agencies, the Western Greys and several other species of squirrel found here (both native and introduced) are now considered threatened.

There are some who see backyard wildlife as nothing more than a nuisance – raiders of gardens and bullies of housecats. But urban wildlife is essential to our well-being and that of our environment. Studies show our human habitat is enriched by urban wildlife. And every time we lose a species, we lose an important part of our eco-system, our web of life, which leads to imbalances in our natural world. With that in mind, I contacted a naturalist I know for some ideas on how to be a good neighbor to these furry, feathered, and winged visitors.

Monica van der Vieren (http://www.silversnagstudio.com/), a nature artist who’s restoring a farmstead in Snohomish County, told me that because of our relatively mild winters, we have a lot of migrating wildlife – among them snow geese from the Wrangell Islands and Stellar’s jays that “nest in the forests during the summer and drop to the lowlands and birdfeeders during the winter.” She said that, “Snowy Owls are appearing in unusual locations well south of their usual winter habitats, with sightings even in West Seattle.” It’s easy to forget that fish are wildlife, and they, too, migrate to our local waters – even urban streams.

Some of our wild neighbors have a very useful function, such as the so-ugly-it’s cute opossum. Monica explained that ‘possums were initially introduced here as novelty pets (imagine that!) – but either escaped or were released. “The opossum has low body fat levels and needs to eat all year... they provide a sort of clean-up service, eating both living and dead small mammals in winter, slugs in summer, and fallen fruits and rotting vegetables in fall.” They typically won’t harm pets but might get aggressive if they’ve come to rely on a steady food source. Being mindful of where you put your birdfeeders, pet food if you feed your pets outdoors, and any accessible garbage can keep undesirable critters away.

Summer butterflies delight the young girls down the street, who each year when the skies are bluer and the days longer come to the garden to look for them. Practicing natural yard care is important even in winter for these and other creatures. “Some wildlife, like butterflies, are hunkered down for the winter in a suspended state of animation, waiting for warm weather to continue developing,” said Monica. “They may be in an unrecognizable form, lurking in your leaf litter.” Maybe letting the leaves lie saves work and butterfly lives.

Want to help? Monica has a few thoughts on how to best create or support habitat for urban wildlife:
• Be thoughtful and consistent with feeding. Some of the down sides to feeding the wildlife we want is attracting those we don’t, like rats or coyotes, or we unintentionally create competition for food, leaving animals vulnerable.
• Be dedicated if you do choose to feed. Taking a holiday and letting a feeder stay empty leaves birds and animals without their usual food source, forcing them to spend precious energy finding an alternative source.
• Feeders should be clean so bacteria and mold can’t grow. Ideally, bird feeders should be kept away from windows so birds can’t accidentally strike the glass. Suet is a good choice for birds in winter (but best kept out of reach of opossums, raccoons, and other critters that like high fat foods). And make sure the food doesn’t freeze.
• Animal shelter can benefit to people, too. Hedgerows and evergreen plants can provide a wind break, helping lower energy use inside while providing less windy shelter for animals outside. Big trees make better dens for raccoons than crawl spaces and chimneys. Some native plants provide both shelter and food, such as rose, cranberry, snowberry, bunchberry and bear berry, or kinnikinnick as it’s commonly known (the EPA has this post on creating a beneficial hedgerow.
• To keep unwanted critters from nesting indoors, simple barriers such as wire mesh can help keep wildlife from moving into structures, which can lead to damage and the need to remove or kill the animal.
• Brush and leaf piles are great shelter for insects, small mammals and even garter snakes. But keep them away from structures to avoid animal invasion (this may not be suitable where rats are abundant).

Monica specifically called out, “The best thing people can do for wildlife in their area is to get to know what's around and share their knowledge with neighbors. Knowing what's out there helps you to make thoughtful choices about helping wildlife get through the winter. You can also contribute valuable information to surveys like the Audubon Society's Christmas Bird Count.

Injured or ill wildlife may be more visible during the winter, “when leaves are off and animals are more evident.  If the animal appears to be alive and need help, a wildlife rehabilitator may be able to help return it to health.” Find a list of wildlife rehabilitators at http://wdfw.wa.gov/conservation/health/rehabilitation.

Lastly, if you don’t have a yard but you’re interested in helping wildlife, there are many ways to lend a hand, depending on your interests. Here are a few options that Monica suggested:

• Volunteer at a wildlife rehabilitation center
• Salvage native plants from development sites for habitat restoration projects; this work is done only in the winter, and volunteers are always welcome (and you can take plants home as well)
• Help maintain native plant habitat in Seattle Parks.

Many agencies accept and need donations – PAWS and the Humane Society among them, both with rescue programs – which are a nice alternative to holiday gift giving. Most will send a card notifying the person whose honor the gift was made in.

If you’d like more information about urban wildlife, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife has informative online resources.