Backyard Beneficials: The Good Guys

Who are the good guys?

While there are lots of insects and animals in this world we do not want to come in contact with, there are many more that are more beneficial to us than we think. The majority of them even live in harmony among us without us even noticing. 

Most people are familiar with the main pollinators: butterflies and bees flitting around the yard, spiders hanging in the corners and birds singing in the trees; however there are many more beneficial creatures that you may have not even noticed. Below we have listed some of the popular and lesser known creatures that are more beneficial and helpful than harmful as well as how you can attract and care for them on your property. 

Beautiful Butterflies 

Everybody loves the Monarchs; they’re brightly colored and probably a species you can name off the top of your head. But did you know that there are more than 50 different species of butterflies in the state of Indiana? 

Other than their beauty, butterflies are beneficial because they pollinate our plants which help produce our flowers, fruits and vegetables. To help attract more butterflies in your yard think about planting and implementing the following: 

• Plant native plants to attract native butterflies species. 
• Look for plants in the red, pink, purple, orange or yellow families. Butterflies also prefer plants that form a flat cluster or have short flower tubes. 
• Make sure that your plants can thrive in full sun since butterflies feed in the hot sun
• Incorporate plants that their young can feed on such as false indigo, false foxglove, and lupine. 
• Protect attracting plants from the wind so that they don’t get blown away. 
• Provide an area both to drink (damp puddling area) and rest. 

FUN FACT! Monarch caterpillars rely solely on species within the Asclepia genus for food. These plants have a milky sap that is toxic to most insects but serves as a protectant for the young, hungry caterpillars against birds and other prey. 

Buzzing Bees

While many people dismiss the idea of having bees in their yard out of fear, native bees do most of the work in the pollination world and pose no real danger to humans (unless you have an allergy). 

Bees, especially solitary bees out for pollen collection generally do not sting humans unless they become agitated. There are 45 species of bees in the United States and 400o in North America and with those numbers only 4 would be considered defensive. To put you at ease, these bees are only considered defensive when humans come near their hives. 

The bees we see buzzing around our yards and landing on plants in the nursery are large, solitary bumblebees. They’re docile and almost kitten-like and can even be pet when they settle down to feed. We don’t encourage this but we’re just letting you know how harmless they really are. 

The bees work hard and provide so much for us. Here are a few tips to keep the bees in your backyard and working hard for us: 

• Plant large swaths of their favorite flowers. Bees like daisy-like and native flowers and a 3′ by 3′ area would be encouraged to keep them happy. 
• Allow the native clovers and dandelions to flower in early spring as their first source of food. You can remove or mow the dandelions before their white puffy seed heads develop so they don’t spread. 
• Provide shelter by leaving dead branches, logs or drilling holes in untreated lumber.
• Bees get thirsty too so leave out small dishes of water to quench their thirst (just make sure that it isn’t too deep or they’ll drown). 

FUN FACT! Bees have two stomachs: one for food and one for pollen and can carry a load of pollen weighing up to 80% of their body weight. Bees will visit anywhere from 50 to 100 flowers in a single pollen collection trip. 

Toads

If you live on a lake, have a pool or can’t sleep for the first couple weeks of spring then you are more than familiar with toads. Toads are more than the nightly singers of the animal world, they eat moths, mosquitoes, snails, slugs, flies, beetles, crickets and cockroaches. YUM! 

To attract more toads in your yard, try the following: 

• Provide a water source like a pond or even buckets of water in the shade. 
• Have a form of shelter like upturned pots or small piles of rocks in the shade. 
• If you have a pond, consider planting taller grasses around the edge; this provides shelter and are also a preferred area for toads to lay their eggs. 

FUN FACT! A toad’s skin color depends on the soil it lives in. Brown soil brings brown skin, gray soil brings gray skin and so on. Toads are so in touch with their environments that this can be a great indicator of an area’s ecosystem. If there are no toads or they leave after living in an area for a long period of time then it may be possible that an alarming change is occurring. 

Bats

Bats, sometimes called the rats of the sky, have received an unfair rep over the years. They’re often thought of as a means of transport for rabies but are no more likely to contract or carry rabies than any other mammal. 

Bats are more beneficial than harmful to humans and even have a one-two punch: they eats loads of insects like mosquitoes and not only pollinate our plants but also disperse seeds. Scientists have estimated bats have saved us between $3.7 and $54 billions in pest control services every year due to their high-insect diet, and through seed spreading are slowly rebuilding forests. 

To keep bats happy and hanging out in your yard, try the following: 

• Plant fragrant and or night blooming flowers like nicotiana, evening primrose, thyme or honeysuckle. 
• Provide a source of water, like a pond or water feature, as bats can lose 50% of their body weight in a single day. 
• Install a bat house to provide shelter from the elements and predators and a place to rest (make sure that your own house is secure and doesn’t become their house too).

FUN FACT! Many people are freaked out by vampire bats, but they are a great medicinal source for humans. Vampire bats have an anticoagulant compound in their saliva that humans have extracted for particular use in stroke patients. The protein known as Draculin or DSPA is used to dissolve blood clots that rob the brain of oxygen during a stroke. 

Extend a Helping Hand

Plants, insects, and animals are not always what they seem. Some, like the beautiful foxglove and most houseplants are poisonous. While others, like bees, nematodes and bats are not so pretty but are purely beneficial. 

Asking for nothing in return, these valuable organisms work hard for us every day, pollinating plants, spreading seeds and eating harmful pests. There are so many small things that we can do to help keep them happy. From providing the right type of plant  and water to building a small shelter, by looking after these helpful critters our gardens and world will be a much happier and healthier and more abundant place.