CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

BEYOND THE STORMWATER FUNCTION OF LID: Creating Ecological Networks

Mark Merkelbach, PWSHerrera Environmental Consultants

Seattle, Washington

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

Transformation of a City

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

Ecological Monographs 80:651–669

Fragmentation

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

Movement

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

Connectivity – Riparian Landscapes

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

Connectivity – Hedgerows

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

Connectivity – Patterns

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

Functions

•Water Transport•Flood Retention•Groundwater Recharge•Shade•Nutrient Transport•Food and Shelter•Wildlife Movement•Soil Conditioning

Riparian Corridor

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

Functions

•Water Transport•Flood Retention•Groundwater Recharge•Shade•Nutrient Transport•Food and Shelter•Wildlife Movement•Soil Conditioning

Riparian Corridor Road Corridor

•Water Transport•Flood Retention•Groundwater Recharge•Shade•Nutrient Transport•Food and Shelter•Wildlife Movement•Soil Conditioning

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

Functions

•Shade•Nutrient Transport•Water Transport•Flood Retention•Groundwater Recharge

•Food and Shelter•Wildlife Movement•Soil Conditioning

LID Corridor

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

FOOD

WATER

SHELTER

Urban Wildlife Requirements

•Food and Shelter•Wildlife Movement

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

Wildlife – Food Sources

•Native plants Seeds Fruits Nuts Berries Nectar 

•Adult butterflies are attracted to red, yellow, orange, pink and purple blossoms that are flat‐topped or clustered and have short flower tubes.

•Know who is feeding in your backyard

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

Wildlife– Cover and Rearing

•Examples:Thicket (multiple vegetation canopies)Rock Pile Woody DebrisDense Shrubs Nesting box 

Lawns have little value to birds or other wildlife, and they require more energy for mowing, applying fertilizers and watering.

•Recreate the plant ecosystem native to your area. •Evergreen trees and shrubs provide excellent cover through all seasons, 

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

American Kestrel 3Ash‐Throated Flycatcher 1 1/2Barn Owl 6

Black‐Capped Chickadee 1 1/8

Carolina Wren 1 1/2Downy Woodpecker 1 1/4Eastern Bluebird 1 1/2House Finch 2House Wren 1 1/4Northern Flicker 2 1/2Prothonotary Warbler 1 1/8Purple Martin 2 1/2Tufted Titmouse 1 1/4Violet‐Green Swallow 1 1/2White‐Breasted Nuthatch 1 1/4

Optimum Hole Sizes (Inches) for Common Birdhouse Nesting Species

Size Matters

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

Wildlife– Cover and Rearing

Canopy Levels

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

Wildlife ‐ Pollinators

•A minimum of 15 blooming species in any plant palette 

•Include species that bloom throughout the year (extend blooming periods with native species that flower or provide habitat at different times of year)

•Plants in massings, groupings, or clumps (not as individual plants); massings of desirable species are easier for pollinators to find 

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

Guangzhou Wetland ParkGuangdong Province, China

•26 square kilometers

•Master Plan – support development and restore and protect last remaining green areas in Guangzhou City

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

Longmu Bay ResortHainan Island, China

•5 square kilometers

•Ocean Beach Resort– LID design of roadways and development properties to protect canal and ocean water quality

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

Lots of Sand

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

5 Year Event 5年一遇 Performance: 80%

(10.74 in)

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

Birds and Pollinators•Palms and dense herbaceous•18 Flowering species •Min. 3 blooming per season

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

CREATING ECOLOGICAL NETWORKS

The Last Slide