As we leave winter months and welcome spring, here are a few things to reset your home for fire resilience. And, speaking of spring, make sure you are well aware of nesting season! Click here to read more about considerations for wildlife in the coming spring months
- Move your wood pile away from home
- Blow leaf debris off roof
And with winter behind us, nesting season is here! 90 species of birds make Sonoma County their home – read more about what nesting season means for the birds, and your home projects, on the Madrone Audubon Society’s website.
But what about fire safe activities? I have chores to do, you exclaim!
Nesting season spans quite a large window of time – half the year, to be exact – and naturally during spring and summer you may want to trim trees, clear brush and conduct other spring-cleaning, cheery weather activities. If you can, try to delay projects that can disrupt wildlife during this vulnerable time frame until late fall or winter.
In the meantime, here are some strategies to make your outdoor projects less impactful during nesting season:
- Work on defensible space projects that focus on the area close to your home; frequently trafficked areas are less attractive homes for birds!
- Assess your home for disaster preparedness and get to work on some simple home-hardening projects.
- If you must disrupt an outdoor area, before starting on the project, look and listen: observe the area where you intend to prune, trim or clear; spend some time looking for evidence of nests and listening for bird calls and chatter.
- Stay aware as you go and know what to look for (or listen for) in terms of whether or not you are being disruptive! Birds are very vocal when their homes are being manhandled.
Do you have more tips you’d add to this list? We’d love to hear more – drop a comment and share.