- You can assist local native wildlife by creating habitats in your garden.
- Begin by undertaking research – to find out which animals you can assist, go to the nearest local area containing native vegetation at either early morning or late afternoon, when animals are most active. Observation will provide you with an indication of which animals you can create habitat for. Remember to look at the tree tops and the ground.
- In addition, contact your local wildlife authority to provide you with a list of species living in local parks.
- Native animals require three levels of native vegetation:
- Tall trees such as eucalypts are used by possums, kookaburras, magpies, fruit bats, cockatoos and lorikeets.
- The middle layer of dense shrubs and smaller trees such as banksias, tea-trees, hakeas and she-oaks are used by possums, robins, finches, wrens and honey-eaters.
- The bottom layer consisting of grasses, vines, groundcover and dwarf trees and shrubs are used by lizards, skinks, native rodents, finches, wrens and echidnas.
- Wetland plants and plants for marshy areas are also important in low-lying areas, such as Braeside, which support seasonal wetlands and floodplains.
- Depending on where you live, there will also be other environments to consider, for example, the dune and coastal environment, the estuarine environment, or heath or swamp scrub, for instance.