Turning Deadwood into Homes for Wildlife - National Wildlife Federation

Turning Deadwood into Homes for Wildlife - National Wildlife Federation:

 If your backyard space is measured in yards rather than acres, you can erect a stack of logs or a brush pile to attract wildlife. Woodpeckers and songbirds will alight on a pile of unsplit logs, and overwintering butterflies will also take refuge in the chinks and cracks. Brush piles can also provide homes for many small animals. As the brush piles or logs break down into rotting wood, they attract more insects as well as amphibians and reptiles.

To create brush piles, crisscross tree thinnings or build them over a tree stump or discarded Christmas evergreen. If possible, stack them loosely about 6 feet high and 10 feet wide, so that birds can take cover within the pile. Birds inside or on top of the pile will leave droppings containing berry, grass and wildflower seeds. These little packages of moist fertilizer and seeds readily sprout and eventually produce a thicket of woody shrubs and vines. As the brush pile rots, the thicket will remain a refuge for wildlife.