According to the National Wildlife Federation, loss of habitat is the biggest threat to wildlife in America today.

To address this it established the Backyard Habitat Certification Program to encourage development and maintenance of natural habitat on a local level. In response, a cadre of concerned citizens with green thumbs started the Alki Wildlife Habitat Project, formed by the Alki Community Council about four years ago, and are close to fulfilling the criteria of Federation guidelines for their organization to become nationally certified.

Alki would be the 27th community certified nationwide and the fifth in Washington State.

Dolly Vinal, Alki Wildlife Habitat Project director and self-proclaimed "queen bee," proudly pointed to over 150 private homes, condominium associations, public schools, parks, historic sites, including the Log House Museum, the Homestead Inn, and even the Sunfish Seafood restaurant on Alki Avenue, as having become locally certified, one of the requirements for a neighborhood to become nationally certified.

The Log House Museum is taking their habitat garden one step further by labeling plants in the traditional Duwamish language and describing how each plant was used by that tribe.

Requirements also include four major components for these gardens. These include food, such as berries, for birds, butterflies, toads, lizards and other critters, cover to shelter wildlife, nesting places, and a water source like a birdbath or creek.

"Butterflies prefer flat-top flowers like asters, black-eyed Susans, and pearly everlasting," said Vinal. "Tubular flowers attract hummingbirds, like flowering currents, the first things to come out in spring, and the later-blooming fuchsia. In addition to birds, squirrels and other ground animals are attracted by the berries on the kinnikinnick."

The Alki project's first demonstration garden is the front yard of a private residence on 63rd Avenue Southwest and Southwest Hines Street. Talk about keeping up with the Joneses; certification signs have since been springing up like daisies in numerous residential gardens lining Hinds Street, spreading westward from 63rd.

"This could become 'Butterfly Lane,'" said Vinal, who is dismissive of grass lawns. "They provide nothing, take away water, and are maintained with pesticides. Our organization educates people to take grass out and put shrubs and ground cover in, low maintenance once established.

"We want to expand into all the West Seattle zip codes," enthused Vinal, a professional landscape designer with her own firm, and a former general contractor and San Diego realtor.

"The National Wildlife Federation would like to see the Cascade-Puget Sound area become the first certified region with connected corridors of habitat. We like to say 'One Yard at a Time.'"

While some residential habitats are hidden from public view, many people pass Luna Park's "backyard" habitat every day (the park with the large anchor) and this fall another habitat will appear near Seacrest dock.

"When the (Luna Park) pier collapsed nothing was out here," said Phil Renfrow, Seattle Parks and Recreation's West Seattle district supervisor and senior gardener for all 70 West Seattle parks covering 1,800 acres.

He and his beach crew design and maintain much of the greenery and garden features seen along the waterside of Alki Avenue.

"Parks had a fund to restore the pier area, and the Alki Wildlife Habitat Project wanted natural habitat here, so it was a perfect fit," he said.

The nearly 900 square-foot habitat just east of the large anchor features native dune and bear grass, coastal strawberry ground cover, red stem dogwood, sword fern, dwarf Oregon grape and shore pine. "Water Habitat Dish," a horizontal rock sculpture containing four bird baths is prominently featured. It was designed by artist Lezlie Jane, known for other outdoor installations including those at Whale Tail Park and Weather Watch Park.

"We have a strong sense of building community pride and restoring a legacy with a common goal," said Vinal, referring to her organization and volunteers. "We are all aware we are doing a lot of negative things to our habitat by polluting, and with global warming, but through our project each individual can contribute locally by improving Alki's habitat. Through certification with the National Wildlife Federation the efforts of the Alki community then become nationally acknowledged."

For further information, go to www.alkinews.com/wildlife.html, and www.nwf.org/backyard. Contact Dolly Vinal at 923-1619.

Steve Shay can be reached at steves@robinsonnews.com.