UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Burgeoning commercial and suburban development in Pennsylvania has led to a decades-long decline in grassland habitats, according to a wildlife expert in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences, who warns that populations of some animals that depend on grasslands have deteriorated as a result.

Margaret Brittingham, associate professor of wildlife, urges landowners to consider planting warm-season grasses to help restore habitat. "Warm-season grasses look very different from the grasses most of us are used to seeing in our lawns and hay fields," she says. "They are much taller and more colorful. They grow in large bunches with many stems and create a striking visual scene. Warm-season grasses grow best in June, July and August, compared to cool-season grasses, which grow best in spring and fall."

Brittingham recommends planting a variety of wildflower and warm-season grass species together. The wildflowers and grasses benefit wildlife by providing food, nesting sites and winter cover. "Wildflowers attract insects that add additional food sources," explains Brittingham. "The thick, rigid, upright stems of warm-season grasses provide excellent nesting and winter cover for grassland birds. White-tailed deer are known to 'hide' their young fawns in warm-season grasses."

Even small patches of warm-season grasses and wildflowers can benefit wildlife. According to Brittingham, homeowners might attract meadow voles, rabbits, songbirds and butterflies with small plantings. "Larger plantings can provide habitat for foxes and nesting sites for birds, such as grasshopper sparrows, ring-necked pheasants, eastern meadowlarks, and field, vesper and savannah sparrows," she says.

To help people learn more about the importance of warm-season grasses and to provide guidance for landowners interested in planting them, Brittingham teamed up with wildlife biologist Colleen DeLong to co-author "Pennsylvania Wildlife #12: Warm-Season Grasses and Wildlife."

Single copies of "Pennsylvania Wildlife #12," as well as other titles in the series, are available free of charge by contacting your county Penn State Cooperative Extension office, or by calling the College of Agricultural Sciences Distribution Center at 814-865-6713. Copies are also available from the Pennsylvania Forest Stewardship Program by calling toll-free (800) 235-WISE, sending e-mail to RNRext@psu.edu or writing to Forest Stewardship Program, Forest Resources Extension, Pennsylvania State University, 7 Ferguson Building, University Park, PA, 16802.

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EDITORS: Contact Margaret Brittingham at 814-863-8442 or e-mail at mxb21@psu.edu.

Contact:

Gary Abdullah gxa2@psu.edu Jeff Mulhollem jjm29@psu.edu 814-863-2719 814-863-9877 fax #164