Certified Backyard Wildlife Habitats

 

South Carolina Wildlife Federation– Conserving and restoring South Carolina’s wildlife and wildlife habitat through education and advocacy!

Certified Backyard Wildlife Habitats– 

South Carolina is currently a LEADER across the NATION in the number of certified Wildlife Habitats per capita! We’re very proud of this distinction, and want to stay at the top of this list!  PLEASE HELP by certifying your Wildlife Habitat today!

Recognize your commitment to wildlife and certify your yard, balcony container garden, church grounds, schoolyard, work landscape, or any greenspace into a Certified Wildlife Habitat®. It is fun, easy and makes a big difference for neighborhood wildlife. 

 

 

 

Community Wildlife Habitats–

Paris Mountain Community in Greenville is the first community to certify in Greenville County! The certification team was made up of 6 members from Mountainside Garden Club, who worked since last October 2020 towards becoming a Certified Community Wildlife Habitat, a growing program throughout the US.  The team effort included working with Paris Mountain State Park and the local neighborhood to integrate sustainable gardening practices, plant natives, create habitat for wildlife and help Paris Mountain to become a more friendly place for all wildlife on the mountain and in the park.  Projects include education and outreach projects to build on goals needed for certification.  

One project has been to distribute 12 nesting boxes for the Prothonotary Warbler, endangered in SC.  These boxes were made by SC Wildlife Federation volunteers.  Another is helping individual residents become certified backyard habitats.  A big project was to plant a native plant garden at Paris Mountain State Park. Working with the Native Plant Society, Earth Design Landscape Architect Rick Huffman and Park Ranger Cathy Taylor, a new, large garden is in place a the foot of the Park Center steps.  A Facebook page and a quarterly newsletter to residents is in the works.     

Any Council Club members wishing to know more about this community program with the National Wildlife Federation can contact Joyce Moore, Mountainside Garden Club president at 864.270.5033 or email to [email protected] 

Supporting Healthy, Green, Wildlife-Friendly Communities

The National Wildlife Federation’s Community Wildlife Habitat™ program partners with cities, towns, counties, neighborhoods, and communities of all kinds to become healthier, greener, and more wildlife-friendly. Community Wildlife Habitats garden and landscape with wildlife in mind, promote the use of native trees and plants, work to reduce or eliminate the use of pesticides and chemicals, and integrate wildlife-friendly practices into sustainability plans and park master plans. Through this program your communities can enhance and restore islands and corridors of wildlife habitat in urban and suburban areas nationwide, while at the same time connecting to existing work around climate resiliency, community resiliency, urban forestry, water conservation, beautification, and more.

Communities earn community-wide certification by certifying individual properties (homes, parks, schools, businesses, and others) in their community as Certified Wildlife Habitats and by doing education and outreach in their community. Education and outreach points are earned by engaging community members in habitat restoration projects, providing resources like native plant lists, and communicating through websites and social media. Download the Community Wildlife Habitat program certification requirements. and learn more about the program