This is part 4 of a 4-part series on planting for backyard wildlife. Read the others before this one. Thanks. Part 1, Part 2, Part 3.
Hiding Places and Camouflage In nature, nature takes its course and provides hiding places for wildlife. Animals and birds want to hide from other species and from bad weather. They need places for burrows, nests and dens. You can provide such places by creating small brush piles, wood piles, stone piles and larger dirt piles.
Brush piles I always leave a few brush piles around the edges of the property for birds to use as hiding places. One year we observed a hawk sitting on a perch I had stuck above a brush pile. After the hawk flew off, a half-dozen small birds flew out of the brush pile where they had been hiding.
Wood piles In the beginning I made wood piles from rotted fire wood but now I have plenty of odd-shaped cuttings from my personal tree maintenance program. All I do is stack logs a foot or foot and a half high, being sure to leave open spaces between the logs. I drop extra logs here and there around the property since it is a 3/4-acre lot and I don't expect all animals to investigate the entire property just to find one log or woodp pile. Birds and chipmunks hide in the wood piles and poke around in them for insects.
Rock piles I don't have any rocks large enough for rock piles but the principle is the same as for woodpiles. Stack large rocks (nine-inch to one footers) in such a way as to provide hiding places. Be sure to include a way in and a way out. If you don't have large rocks, maybe you can get your hands on chunks of concrete. I find that broken cinderblock and chimney pipe look too ugly unless you camouflage them with brush, however. In fact, two or three cinderblocks laid next to one another with their holes adjoining and covered with brush make a nice cool retreat for chipmunks and toads. Chimney pipe works well for the same purpose but is large enough to invite skunks.
This chickadee (May 1998) and its mate found a dead branch of Autumn olive a good place to chop out a nest cavity. The branch was left specifically to attract birds.
Sunny Leaves Doves particular enjoy spending cold spring afternoons sitting camouflaged on a mat of shiny brown tree leaves with the sun reflecting warmth off them. To accomplish this difficult device, let some leaves remain on the ground in a few sunny sheltered spots beneath some of your trees.
