https://wdfw.wa.gov/living/sna...

Even though I posted this, I had no idea what 'tree snaps' might be - oopsie, should read 'tree snags.' Apologies.

I first read such sentiment decades ago when farmers were ripping out hedge rows and and trees that separated fields.
If you walk in an old woods, although they are getting harder to find and when such isles are sold new owners are often far from friendly it is amazing what you find in them.

Great article! thanks for the link.
I have a declining ash tree that I intend to leave as a snag if it dies. It is well away from buildings and will be no hazard.

That is interesting, although attracting more of some of the critters might not be a positive addition to a neighborhood setting, like raccoons or bears.

I love the article, fascinating. It was all stuff one could imaginative, if given some thought, but the occasion to do the thinking might not otherwise arise without encountering the article, or a "snag" tree.

Our yard is not big enough to home a dead tree, but I have started a brush pile in a shady, out-of-the way spot near the tree/brush line that separates our yard from neighbors. I think some chipmunks have moved in since I saw at least 2 coming & going from the brush a couple times, but it's been too hot for the past couple months to sit & observe the wildlife to possibly see them again.

We do have 2 sick cherry laurel trees that need to come down because gummosis has caused big holes in their trunks. I definitely plan to add a lot of that material to the brush pile, and we'll burn some of it over the winter, and use some of the unaffected parts in grill for smoking meats. The brush pile been there for a couple years and the soil under/around the brush pile has turned dark and seemingly very fertile. A lot of what I used to start it was live trimmings from keeping the tree limbs from bumping our heads, a constant trimming chore, so those decomposed leaves have been the primary factor so far. Only the smaller twigs would have had time to decompose yet. I've been using that soil for smaller potted plants & it's going very well, just like when I had a compost pile (which I gave up in favor of methods that don't require moving OM, I put it in it's final place the first time.) I can change the soil as often as I want for free.

A couple snags in my wilderness point



The big down log is being used as a feeding perch and underground burrow

I had read about the benefits of snags to wildlife years ago. I leave them be wherever possible.

My yard has trees at the back and I decided to let it be more natural as the trees grew, including sections from trees we have felled over the 20+ years. They are nice stools by the campfire at first. As they rot, we find bess beetles use logs, they are huge but don't pinch
https://bugguide.net/node/view...
Logs and large branches grow termites, too, and other critters, which feed even more critters. Now including my chickens. Some of the rotting pieces sit in their yard, and when I tip them over, the chickens find worms underneath, roly poly bugs, termites or ants on the bottom of the log..
I have read that insects are really very important food for your wild birds.

When I used to hunt wabbit regularly, an old large woods ten acres plus or minus where some one had stared clearing part and then quite leaving large piles of cut branches were the spot to go to find them.
In the snow the I often found the wabbit highways, fascinating as they were well traveled when snow got deeper, with only rare occurrence some one wandered off of the trail.

We have long left snags.

I'm not understanding the below suggestion. What do they mean by openings?

"Cover any openings under the eaves or other places around your house where house sparrows and starlings may nest. These non-native birds are undesirable competitors for food and nesting cavities and many native birds have suffered because of their presence. Bird houses and feeders should be designed and managed to reduce use by sparrows and starlings."

Hi Deb,
I just read the article. I like the concept of property owners as "habitat managers." I give presentations to various groups, mostly garden clubs and bird watching groups; that is the perfect way to express what I'm trying to say. I want folks to understand that we live in nature, that nature is not somewhere else. Explaining that they are habitat managers is the perfect way to convey the concept!

It's been moved to:

https://wdfw.wa.gov/species-ha...