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CHAPEL HILL NEWS News I 7A ORANGE COUNTY OOMIKISSION FOR THE ENVIRONMENT pile some of us value plants in our landscapes primarily for the beauty they provide, we may not realize that plants are in fact critically important components of food webs and essential to the life cycles of birds and in- sects. Author Doug Tallamy explains, "almost all North American birds other than seabirds - 96 percent - feed their young with insects." These in- sects require host plants on which to lay their eggs, plants ,with which they have evolved over millen- nia. Replacing native plants (those species that have evolved with surrounding plants and animals, each influencing the evolution, of the other) with species from other places can hinder the ability of some of these insects to repro- duce. One example can be seen in a comparison of the flowering dogwood (Cornus florida), which is native to Orange County, and the kousa dogwood (Cornus kousa), which is native to Korea, China, and Japan. The flowering dogwood supports 117 species of moth and but- terfly laivae, while the kousa dogwood supports none. Some gardeners point out that they also fre- quently observe insects on their non - native plants. For instance, but- terflies can often be seen drinking nectar from the flowers of the non - native butterfly bush (Buddleia davidii). While this may be beneficial food for the butterflies, unfortunately no species of butterfly native to North Carolina will use the butterfly bush as a host plant on which to lay its eggs. Better choices to provide breed- ing support for butterflies include oak -leaf hydran- gea (Hydrangea quercifo- lia), redbud (Cercis cana- densis), and fringe -tree (Chionanthus virginicus), to name a few. Native plants are also important to our econo- my. Insects pollinate many of the foods we enjoy eating. Some species, such as the monarch butterfly, have an estimated eco- nomic value in the bil- lions of dollars. These insects will cease to exist without the correct host plants on which to lay their eggs. In fact, re- searchers estimate that the monarch butterfly population has declined by 80 percent over the past 21 years. The decline is attributed in large part to the disappearance of the milkweed plants, resulting in the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,con- sidering the monarch butterfly for protection under the Endangered Species Act (ESA).. In contrast to the high economic value of na- tives, many non- native species can be econom- ically and environmental- ly devastating; such spe- cies are categorized as invasive by the federal government. They in- clude English ivy, Japa- nese honeysuckle, au- tumn olive, tree of heav- en, and multiflora rose. Nearly half of the species listed for protection un- der the ESA are in trouble due at least in part to invasive species. Far from the economic This is the latest in an occasional series of articles by the Orange County Commission for the Environment. The commission is a volunteer advisory board to the Board of County Commissioners. Additional information can be found in the Orange County State of the Environment 2014 report at bit.ly /lmTE5K2 ..................... ............................... good of natives, invasive species are estimated to cost the U.S. more than 120 billion dollars in damages annually. It can take decades to deter- mine that a species is invasive, and such a find- ing does not automatical- ly lead states to ban the sale of the species. While not all non -na- tive plants are invasive or damaging to the envi- ronment, it is wise to understand whether a plant is invasive or in some way damaging to pollinators. A number of resources exist to help residents figure out which native plants will thrive in your yard or garden. The N.C. Botanical Garden offers plant lists, classes, tours, family and youth pro- grams, and knowledgea- ble people to help you in your hunt (not to mention a beautiful garden to stroll through to see spec- tacular natives year - round). In addition, from June to Oct. 3, the Botan- ical Garden is offering workshops, exhibits, talks and tours that highlight the importance of pollina- tors and what can be done to help secure a stable future for them.