Rewild Alabama : Native Plant Conservation

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Rewild Alabama : Native Plant Conservation

Species specifics will be most applicable to the N/NE part of the state (Alabama) however, are also applicable to the AL/TN/GA tri-state area.

Citizen Scientists passionate about educating fellow citizens on the importance of maintaining and restoring the incredible biodiversity of our beautiful state and the Southeastern United States Always check databases to be assured that a plant is native to your area.

01/12/2026

I have a genuine question for those who say "Humans are the most invasive species!"

What is the solution to that?

01/12/2026

🌍 Are Humans "The Most Invasive Species"? 🌍

Hot Take:
We are not an invasive species.

We are a native species ..... to every continent. We are woven into the fabric of the Earth, just like the roots of ancient trees, just like the rivers carving valleys over time. For the entirety of human existence, we have lived in close relationship with land, water, and life. We are not separate. We belong. Not apart, but A PART!

Have we caused damage? Absolutely! A lot of it. We've made mistakes - some huge, some heartbreaking. But here's something we don’t hear enough:

What good does self-hatred do for us?
What grows from shame?

Shame doesn’t plant trees.
Self-hatred doesn’t clean rivers.
Guilt doesn’t restore prairies.

Love does.
Care does.
Hope does.
Action does.

We’re not just capable of harming ecosystems! We’re capable of healing them too. We can restore forests, protect pollinators, nurture soil, and reweave the threads of biodiversity. And as we do, something amazing happens: nature helps heal us in return.

The REST of nature reminds us of our place in the world. Not as invaders. But as caretakers. As part of the whole.

Let’s stop telling ourselves we don’t belong.
Let’s start showing up like we do.

01/11/2026

Want to Attract Carolina Wrens? Feed the Insects First.

Carolina Wrens are primarily insect-eaters.
The vast majority of their diet is animal matter - insects, spiders, caterpillars, beetles, ants, and other invertebrates they hunt in leaf litter, bark, and dense shrubs.

They do eat seeds and berries, especially in winter, but those foods are supplemental, not the foundation of their diet. Even during colder months, wrens are still actively hunting insects wherever they can find them.

Swipe through to see native Alabama plants that actually support how Carolina Wrens feed.... dense shrubs, vines, grasses, and perennials that harbor insects and create foraging cover.

🍂 Leaf litter is not messy, it’s essential.
Wrens depend on it.

Feeders may bring visits, but insect-rich habitat is what keeps Carolina Wrens year-round.

01/11/2026

Honey Bees Aren’t Necessary.....
(And Agriculture & Conservation Can Co-Exist)

This idea can feel uncomfortable because modern agriculture has been built around honey bees. But here’s the important distinction:

Honey bees are essential to our CURRENT agricultural system, BUT not to nature itself.

North America supported abundant food systems for millions of years before honey bees arrived. Pollination was handled by thousands of native bee species, along with flies, beetles, butterflies, moths, birds, and bats. Those systems worked because landscapes were diverse, not simplified.

🌱Honey bees became dominant because they:
~live in massive, transportable colonies
~can be moved by the millions
~tolerate monocultures

That’s an industrial solution... not a biological one.

🌱Native bees often outperform honey bees on many crops:
~Blue orchard bees for fruit trees
~Squash bees for squash and pumpkins
~Bumble bees on tomatoes and other crops that require buzz pollinatio + in cool, wet weather and greenhouses

Some native bees are already managed commercially. Others don’t scale well ...not because they’re ineffective, but because they’re designed for local, diverse landscapes, not endless single-crop fields.

And that’s where the future comes in.

If agriculture and conservation are treated as opposites, both lose.
If we redesign agriculture to work with ecology (hedgerows, native plantings, reduced chemical reliance, habitat corridors) pollination becomes more resilient, less fragile, and less dependent on one species doing all the work.

If there are a very small number of crops that can only exist at today’s scale with honey bees, the question isn’t whether nature should bend to protect that system ... it’s whether the system needs to evolve.

We can grow food.
We can protect ecosystems.
Our future depends on doing both at the same time.

Healthy farms need healthy pollinator communities....not just hives on trucks, but living landscapes that support life year after year.

01/10/2026

Meet the Brown-headed Cowbird: misunderstood, inconvenient… and ecologically revealing

The Brown-headed Cowbird is one of the most talked-about birds in North America, and often one of the least understood. Let’s unpack what’s actually going on.

❓️First, brood parasitism.
This is a reproductive strategy where a bird lays its eggs in the nest of another species, leaving the host parents to raise the chick. Cowbirds don’t build nests or feed young at all. Instead, a female quietly lays a single egg in another bird’s open cup nest. The cowbird chick hatches quickly, grows fast, and often outcompetes the host’s young for food. It feels ruthless, but it’s simply an evolved strategy.

❓️Why would this evolve?
Cowbirds evolved alongside large grazing mammals, especially bison. They followed herds across open grasslands, feeding on insects stirred up by hooves. That lifestyle required constant movement. Nesting ties you to one place for weeks; parasitism doesn’t. Over time, natural selection favored birds that could reproduce without stopping, settling, or defending a nest. Mobility won.

Across North America, cowbirds have been documented using over 220 host species. But they aren’t random. In Alabama, parasitism is concentrated in a much smaller group....birds that are common, edge-loving, and build open cup nests that are easy to access.

Most frequent cowbird hosts in Alabama include:
• Indigo Bunting
• Eastern Towhee
• Northern Cardinal
• Song Sparrow
• Yellow-breasted Chat

These species nest low or in shrubs, tolerate edges and human-altered habitats, and feed their young mostly insects (exactly what a cowbird chick needs). Shape, placement, and diet matter most.

❗️Here’s the part that often gets left out: cowbirds are not “only bad.”
~They consume huge numbers of insects, especially in disturbed and agricultural landscapes. They also act as a kind of population pressure valve, preventing a few edge-adapted species from completely dominating open habitats. In historically dynamic systems -fire, grazing, floods- this pressure helped maintain diversity.

~Cowbirds are also excellent indicators of excess disturbance.
High cowbird numbers or unusually high parasitism rates usually signal fragmented forests, too much edge, and landscapes locked into permanent disturbance - roads, lawns, powerlines, pasture without rotation. The cowbird isn’t causing that imbalance. It’s responding to it.

~And hosts aren’t helpless. Many species that have lived alongside cowbirds for thousands of years have counter-strategies. Some recognize and eject cowbird eggs. Some abandon parasitized nests and renest elsewhere. Some simply produce enough offspring to absorb the loss. There’s even evidence of retaliation behavior, where cowbirds may destroy nests that reject their eggs!

So the cowbird isn’t a villain.
It’s a native species doing exactly what it evolved to do...thriving in landscapes shaped by disturbance. When their impact feels overwhelming, it’s often because the ecosystem itself is out of balance.

01/10/2026

Same Darwin....same....😭

01/10/2026

An Uncomfortable Truth .... today's invasive species spotlight ----- the common housecat (when allowed to be outdoors).

Invasive Species Spotlight: Felis catus

Outdoor and feral cats (even well-fed pets allowed outside) aren’t just hunters, they’re one of the biggest human-linked causes of bird deaths in the U.S. each year. Studies estimate free-roaming domestic cats kill an astounding 1.3–4 billion birds (and 6.3–22.3 billion mammals) annually just here in the United States. A large portion of that toll comes from unowned and feral cats roaming freely.

Worldwide, the impact is just as stark. Domestic cats have directly contributed to the extinction of dozens of native vertebrate species, including at least 33 species of birds, mammals, and reptiles worldwide.

These losses aren’t abstract - many ground-nesting or island bird populations are especially vulnerable because they evolved with no natural mammalian predators.

Cats are beloved pets, but outdoors they become invasive predators.

Keeping cats indoors, using enclosed “catio” space, and supporting humane feral-cat solutions helps protect native songbirds and other wildlife.

Links to Sources can be found in the comments!

01/09/2026

Plant this NOT That!

DO Plant NATIVE Yaupon Holly (Ilex Vomitoria) instead of the INVASIVE and ecologically damaging Heavenly Bamboo (Nandina Domestica)

Suburban neighborhoods are covered in invasive Nina, and their nearby woods lines are often overrun too. Nandina offers no ecological benefit, but the native Yaupon Holly (Ilex vomitoria) is a fantastic alternative! It shares Nandina’s loved characteristics - evergreen foliage, vibrant red winter berries (on females), and the ability to be trimmed into a hedge - but also provides immense value to local biodiversity.

Other Benefits of Yaupon Holly Include:
🌿 Wildlife: Many bird species eat the fruit, particularly in late winter after several freezes and thaws. Mammals enjoy the fruit as well, and the flowers attract a variety of insects. Dense branches also provide excellent nesting sites for birds.
🌿 Medicinal Uses: Yaupon Holly is the only caffeinated plant native to the United States! Its young leaves and twigs can be brewed into a tea, a tradition originating with Indigenous peoples who called it “black drink.” The plant’s scientific name, *Ilex vomitoria*, stems from early European misunderstandings of ceremonial use—it doesn’t actually cause vomiting.
🌿 Holiday Decor: The beautiful fruiting branches are perfect for festive decorations.
🌿 Supports Pollinators: It’s a nectar source for butterflies and other pollinators and serves as a larval host for the Henry’s Elfin butterfly.
🌿 Deer Resistant: Moderately resistant to deer browsing.

Why settle for invasive plants when you can beautify your yard and support wildlife with this incredible native alternative?

01/09/2026

"Please note: It is also illegal to bait or provide supplemental feed for wildlife within the Chronic Wasting Disease Management Zone (CMZ); grain, salt products, minerals, or consumable natural and manufactured products may not be placed or put out for wildlife with the following exceptions:
(a) Seed or grain used solely for normal agricultural, forest management, or wildlife food plot production purposes.
(b) Feed solely placed inside an active hog trap.
(c) Feed for attracting birds and squirrels with common bird and squirrel feeders placed within 100 feet of a residence or occupied building.
(d) Feed as permitted by the Commissioner of the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources."

01/09/2026

Native Plant Spotlight:
Senega incarnata (syn. Polygala incarnata) - Pink Milkwort

Senega incarnata, commonly known as Pink Milkwort, is a native wildflower that quietly lights up moist open landscapes with soft pink flower spikes. Though often overlooked due to its slender form, this species plays an important role in Alabama’s wet savannas and open pinelands (ecosystems that depend on seasonal moisture and disturbance to remain diverse).

In Alabama, Pink Milkwort is primarily associated with Coastal Plain habitats, especially areas where water moves slowly across the landscape rather than standing year-round.

🌿Wildlife & Ecological Value:
~ Pollinator resource: Nectar attracts small native bees, wasps, and butterflies.
~ Wetland associate: Contributes to plant diversity in seepage slopes, wet prairies, and savannas.
~ Indicator species: Presence often reflects intact hydrology and minimal soil disturbance.
~ Seasonal flowering support: Blooms when fewer wetland forbs are in peak flower.

🌿Landscape Value:
~ Best suited to naturalized gardens, wet meadow plantings, or restoration projects.
~ Prefers full sun to light shade.
~ Requires moist to wet, acidic soils, often sandy or peaty.
~ Fine texture pairs well with sedges, grasses, and other wetland wildflowers.
~ Not competitive in dense or heavily mulched garden beds.

🌿Gardening & Conservation Notes:
~ Strongly tied to fire-maintained wet savannas and pinelands.
~ Declines rapidly with fire suppression or altered drainage.
~ Difficult to transplant...should only be grown from nursery-propagated or responsibly collected seed.
~ An excellent choice for habitat restoration and conservation plantings, rather than traditional landscapes.

📸: Richard & Teresa Ware

01/08/2026

Want to attract Northern Red Cardinals to your yard using native plants?

Northern Cardinals are primarily seed-eaters.
The majority of their diet comes from seeds and other plant material, with berries playing an important seasonal role, especially in fall and winter.

Insects make up a smaller portion overall, but they become critically important during the breeding season, when cardinals need protein to raise healthy chicks. Caterpillars and other soft-bodied insects matter far more than most people realize.

🌿 Want to take it one step further?
Adding native perennial herbaceous plants increases insect diversity, which supports breeding cardinals without replacing their seed-based diet.

Swipe through to see native Alabama plants that actually reflect how cardinals eat ... seed-producing grasses and flowers, berry-rich shrubs, and a few key trees.

01/08/2026

Did you know that many premixed bird seeds cause more problems than they solve?

Most people buy bird seed assuming it’s automatically helpful. Unfortunately, many common mixes come with some hidden issues.

🌱 Problem #1: Invasive or weedy seeds
Many inexpensive seed mixes contain seeds like pigweed, millet, or other agricultural byproducts.

These seeds often:
~sprout under feeders
~spread into lawns, gardens, and natural areas
~compete with native plants birds actually depend on

You may think you’re feeding birds… but you could also be planting future problems.

🐦 Problem #2: Seeds that attract nuisance species
Seeds like milo are largely ignored by most native songbirds, but they are readily eaten by European Starlings, House Sparrows and other nuisance birds

These species can:
~crowd out native birds
~increase aggressive behavior at feeders
~reduce access for the birds people are actually trying to help

That’s why you often see piles of uneaten seed on the ground ... native birds didn’t want it in the first place.

🌿 The bigger truth:
Birds don’t need a buffet of random seeds.
They need habitat.

Native plants provide:
~the right seeds
~insects for protein (which most birds require)
~berries timed to winter
~shelter, nesting sites, and safety

No seed mix can replicate that.

🪴 A better approach:
If you feed birds:

~choose single-ingredient, high-quality seeds (like black oil sunflower)
~skip cheap mixes with fillers (what does "grain products even MEAN anyway?!)

But if you really want to help birds:
🌱 Plant native trees, shrubs, grasses, and wildflowers.
🍂 Leave seedheads and leaf litter.
🌎 Build habitat, not dependence.

Feeding birds feels good.
Growing their food works better.

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Higdon, AL
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+12565976850

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http://rewildalabama.blogspot.com/

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