SHELTERING ARBORVITAE

     Arborvitae trees, also known as northern white cedars, are commonly planted, often in rows to block wind, on many suburban lawns in southeastern Pennsylvania, as elsewhere.  Young to half-grown arborvitae are evergreen, have attractive, columnar shapes the year around, and provide beauty to humans and shelter to a variety of birds through the year.      

     Several kinds of birds, including dark-eyed juncos, saw-whet owls, long-eared owls, Cooper's hawks, mourning doves, house finches, house sparrows, American robins and other species, spend part of each winter day in the sheltering embrace of arborvitaes' densely-needled boughs to escape cold wind and predators.  Owls spend days in them, while the other species are in them at night. 

     Little groups of long-eared owls obviously exit arborvitae, and other coniferous trees, around sunset each winter evening.  These birds are beautifully silhouetted as they fly out of those sheltering trees and off to nearby fields to catch mice.   

     Other birds, besides the owls, leave arborvitae before sunrise, eager to feed.  One can see the doves and smaller birds zipping out of those evergreens and quickly flying to wherever they get food. 

     Several kinds of small birds raise their chicks in young to half-grown, densely-limbed, planted northern white cedars because of the great shelter those trees offer.  Over the years, I've seen mourning doves, northern mockingbirds, chipping sparrows, song sparrows, house finches, blue jays, American robins and a small colony of purple grackles nesting in rows of arborvitae in our neighborhood.  And I'm sure other kinds of adaptable, common bird species rear offspring in arborvitae as well. 

     Arborvitae is one of the first tree species planted in new suburbs built in fields.  Those cedars, then, are one of the first protective plants that birds can nest in.  As there are more and more suburbs being built, birds that adapt to them and nest in arborvitae have an increase in nesting places, and populations.    And as the vegetation in those new suburbs grows over several years, more types of birds and other animals will move into those maturing suburbs.

     Northern white cedars are popularly planted in suburbs.  And they offer great shelter to a variety of adaptable wildlife, which increases each adaptable species' numbers, much to our benefits, and theirs.     

    

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