Marketing Supplement to The Spokesman-Review
Thursday, November 22, 2012
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Special Holiday Edition
Craving more Down to Earth in your diet? We hope this special Thanksgivingsized issue of Down to Earth Northwest fills you up nicely! Think about Down to Earth as a healthysized portion of the latest sustainable news and opinions. What are some of the local, national and global challenges? Who are some of the voices and what makes them so passionate? What projects hope to make life healthier or more sustainable? What’s holding back the progress? What’s special about the Spokane Coeur d’Alene area green efforts? Please use this Thanksgiving Day section as a tasty appetizer to learn about Down to Earth. You’ll find the environmental news from The Spokesman-Review and other regional media; commentary on state, national and global issues, including places you can share your
thoughts or ask questions; an extensive calendar of sustainable-themed events in Washington and Idaho; ways to win prizes all year long; and local blogs and columns.
Ready to dig in? Here’s how to get started: • Down To Earth – the roots of Down To Earth NW were planted five years ago, when college students and sports bloggers Bart Mihailovich and Paul Dillon began an environmental-themed blog. Though Bart was hired as the Spokane Riverkeeper in 2010, Paul continues to author the blog. Visit www.downtoearthnw.com/blogs/down-earth/ • Owners of Kindle electronic reading devices can sign up for regular posts from the Down to Earth blog. A monthly subscription is 99 cents from the Amazon Kindle Store Library. (Search for “Down to Earth Spokane”). • Twitter users can get headlines, interesting links and projects @DTE_spokane. • Like the official Down to Earth Northwest Facebook page. • KYRS Thin Air Radio presents Bart and Paul’s Down to Earth radio program at 12:30-1:15 p.m. Tuesdays on 92.3 and 88.1 FM in Spokane, or catch an archived podcast on the Down to Earth site at www.downtoearthnw.com/podcast/ or www.kyrs.org. • Email us your thoughts at info@downtoearthnw.com!
Backyard sanctuary offers refuge for all creatures - A true Mother Nature finds solace in her favorite room Story and photos by Courtney Dunham, Down to Earth NW Correspondent From that day on, Dunham said the bird As much as Kimberly Dunham attached herself to her. loves autumn, she hates closing A friend lent her a cage, and Dunham fed her the door to her home’s most every few hours. This went on for a few weeks, beautiful room – her back backyard. which, looking back, may have been too long. From June “She might have been ready, but I wasn’t,” tto September, she said. sshe leaves the One night when she opened Francis’ cage for d door open feeding, she flew out. “I kept saying, ‘How’s she – it’s great going to know what to do?’” she said. ffor her two In the morning heard a familiar squawk d dogs, and an outside. Francis was in the rain gutter, and e easy way to hopped into Dunham’s hand when she climbed e extend the up to retrieve her. living space in Dunham knew the bird needed a better home, her Spokane and found a wildlife rehabilitation center in Otis home. Orchards. “It’s my soft “I knew that I could only do so much, and that place to land this was a creature that deserved a real chance,” a and absolutely she said. “She didn’t deserve to be knocked out d dread when I of the tree. She trusted me to do right by her.” have to shut The experience inspired Dunham to consider tthe door,” she transforming her yard into a wildlife sanctuary. said. “I feel such a lack of space, like the world is closing in.” Dunham spends about three hours a “p “papas and mamas” who visit the porch day in her yard – a Washington State fo for bread. Wildlife Sanctuary – during summer. Her “This is my way of giving back for so much yard was the main reason she bought the jo joy that they’ve given me,” she said. house nearly 15 years ago. If the squirrels aren’t fed by a certain time, “I fell in love with the neighborhood, th they let her know, and race each other down and wanted a big backyard where my tre trees for peanuts. dogs would have plenty of space,” she The tradeoff of nurturing lives sometimes said. “I didn’t even really like the house in includes tragedy. Dunham became attached until I saw the yard.” to her first squirrel, Dew, and her baby Her desire to create a backyard C Clarisse. One day she watched Clarisse fall sanctuary began with a baby bird. One 30 feet from the nest. night several years ago, she was working “I was hysterical. It was terrible,” Dunham at a downtown Spokane restaurant and sa said. “Dew came down and picked her up bar when a drunk decided to shake a tree by the neck, and about 20 feet up, dropped Kimberly Dunham’s Spokane backyard has been designated as a where a family of birds was living, spilling att her,” she said. “I’ll never forget her tenacity Washington Wildlife Sanctuary, and provides year-round food and shelter trying to get back to the nest.” least one baby to the sidewalk. for a variety of animals including birds and squirrels. Knowing that Dunham has “a thing” for Since then, several “Dews” and babies have all creatures, one of the employees brought She now knows when birds are mating and come and gone, and although Dunham is the fallen baby bird to her. She couldn’t find when they warn each other that a hawk is always sad to see death, it’s all part of nature. the mother, so the bird, which she nicknamed coming. She can tell the difference between Dunham’s sanctuary also boasts dozens of Francis, went home in a to-go container. songs of a goldfinch, sparrow, robin or trees, and bushes. The bird initially refused food and water. hummingbird. She loves them all. “I’d love a bigger house, but I can’t imagine When it was time to go to work the next day, Her backyard includes a dozen birdhouses leaving all of my creatures now,” she said. “I Dunham wasn’t sure what to do with her, so she and birdbaths strategically placed to keep them appreciate everyone’s role here – even starlings placed Francis in a tree in her backyard, hoping away from predators and direct sunlight. and bugs – everyone has their role…. maybe she might fly out somewhere else. When she The sanctuary approval process required her everyone except the skunks!” returned from work, Francis was still there. to show that she can provide food, water and Talking about her sanctuary brings a little light The next day Francis drank water from her shelter for wildlife. and warmth of summer, and the reminder of fingertips and started scarfing down broccoli Dunham offers daily seeds and fresh water rebirth next spring. heads and earwigs like candy. for birds, peanuts for squirrels, and nectar for “Nothing compares to seeing dormancy come finches and hummingbirds. She knows the alive again. That always makes winter worth it.”
To be considered for an official wildlife sanctuary, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife offers these suggestions: • Plant trees and shrubs. Vegetation attracts wildlife. Dead trees, especially snags, are valuable, • Add a birdbath, pond, or other water source, which can be safe places for animals to bathe and drink. • Add bird houses, or leave snags on your property, as homes for cavity-nesting birds. • Cover openings under roof eaves or other places where house sparrows and starlings may nest. Non-native birds are undesirable competitors for food and nesting cavities. Bird houses and feeders should be designed and managed to reduce use by sparrows and starlings. • Control neighborhood cats which can go after birds that feed or nest on
the ground. Get more details from the American Bird Conservancy about “Cats Indoors!” • Get neighbors interested. Adjacent yards with good resources are more effective than one, since most wildlife species need larger areas. • Keep bird feeders clean and safe. • For a $5 fee, WDFW will send you a personalized certificate, a yard sign to educate others about your habitat project, and a subscription to their “Crossing Paths” electronic newsletter. For more information on certifying your backyard for wildlife, visit wdfw.wa.gov/living/backyard/.
– Courtney Dunham
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