Learn How You Can Help Native Species Thrive

Home to an abundance of scenic rivers, mountain streams, wetlands, farmland and forestland, Western Pennsylvania is a beautiful and biodiverse landscape. Equally as picturesque and distinct are the native plants and animals, and their habitats, that call are region home and make it ecologically important and unique.

In the 2025 Summer/Fall issue of Conserve, you’ll learn more about the importance of native species in Western Pennsylvania and some of the work the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy undertakes to protect them.

Read the issue of Conserve or continue reading this article to learn more about the benefits of and ways to protect our region’s native species.

What Are Native Species?

Western Pennsylvania is home to thousands of native plant and animal species, including pollinators, birds, and other organisms, that have evolved here over thousands of years alongside other native species and plants. The native species that comprise the diverse ecosystems of Western Pennsylvania provide a sense of place and offer numerous benefits, including supporting the complex interactions within naturally occurring ecosystems. Protecting habitats for native species protects important natural areas, which are valuable for both conservation and recreation, and safeguards and maintains critical ecosystem services, on which all life depends for the natural functioning of our region.

Native species have adapted to our specific conditions in our region’s uplands, wetlands, and aquatic ecosystems and are linked with other plants and animals in a complex ecological web. For example, sometimes native species feed exclusively on their “host” plants, with whom they have co-evolved. Native species play a crucial role in maintaining healthy ecosystems, by providing food and habitat, contributing to cleaner air and water, and helping maintain the natural biodiversity that makes Pennsylvania unique. Native species are often the foundation for local culture, traditions, place-names or events.

Native Species’ Benefits and Interdependence

There are many examples of interdependence in nature, says Ephraim Zimmerman, the Conservancy’s senior director of conservation science for the natural heritage program. Most of us are familiar with the Monarch butterfly, whose caterpillars feed exclusively on milkweed species.

While not all non-native species are invasive, “our native species provide important ecosystem services that non-native or invasive species cannot without causing harm to native species or humans. Across the Conservancy, when we conserve and restore land, restore headwater streams, assess rare species, and conduct aquatic habitat surveys, we are prioritizing our native species and protecting and managing their habitats so that they can sustain or thrive in the face of climate change and biodiversity uncertainty,” says Ephraim.

One of the most biodiverse ecosystems in our region, the French Creek watershed, provides habitat for rare and endangered species, numerous native mussels, fish and other wildlife, including the eastern hellbender, Pennsylvania’s state amphibian that is an important indicator of water quality.

Native Species_Mountian LaurelThe Laurel Highlands, home to Fallingwater, Ohiopyle State Park, Seven Springs and other significant recreational interests, owes its name to the mountain laurel (Kalmia latifolia), as well as species of rhododendron, whose bright white and pink blossoms cover the mountainsides beneath the canopy of oaks and hickories each spring. The Laurel Highlands wouldn’t be the same without its native plants!

Also found along the riverscour prairies of the Youghiogheny River in the Laurel Highlands is the Monongahela Barbara’s buttons (Marshallia pulchra), a beautiful but rare wildflower that only grows in this habitat among the large bedrock flats and boulders at the edge of sparse locations of the Youghiogheny River. WPC’s Land Protection efforts, dating back to the beginning of their work in the Laurel Highlands, have focused on the mountainous landscape, supporting the forests on either side of the Youghiogheny River. Ephraim says, “protecting the land surrounding these habitats is essential for this species.”

“These are just a few examples of the thousands of native species that were either only found in favorable habitat conditions or connected to special, rare habitat types in our region,” he adds. “As invasive species increasingly threaten natural habitats, safeguarding land and forests is more important now more than ever.”

Native species are important to sustaining human life as well and the success of sustainable development projects is dependent on protecting our native biodiversity. The nature-based services provided by plants and animals are called “ecosystem services,” such as how plants convert carbon dioxide to oxygen.

The dense, extensive root systems, of native floodplain trees such as American elm, silver maple and American sycamore, and shrubs like nine-bark, silky dogwood, and many native species of willow filter pollutants before they enter waterways and help to stabilize eroding streambanks, thus making native vegetation buffers with these and other native trees and shrubs effective along the edges of rivers, streams, creeks and wetlands. These native plants also provide other benefits, such as a habitat for native wildlife and insects that are essential food sources for songbirds.

Many native plants, such as common milkweed, eastern redbud and white oaks, that are regularly planted in our community flower gardens are perfectly adapted to Pennsylvania’s environment and support a greater number of native invertebrate species than non-natives. For example, white oak is known to support over 500 native species of butterflies and moths, whereas the non-native invasive tree of heaven is known to support only two. Native species often require less water, fertilizer and maintenance than non-native plants.

 

What Can I Do to Help Native Species Thrive?

Learn More

“Learning more about native species in the region is the first thing we all can do to help native species,” says Ephraim. So, you don’t have to be a conservation professional to get involved in conservation of native species, he adds.

Learning to identify native plants and wildlife species fosters a love for the region by deepening one’s understanding of the natural world. Hiking, biking or wildlife watching in our region’s natural areas is a great first step. Identifying your nearby nature is a critical part of combating “nature deficiency disorder” and helps establish a connection with the natural world. PA Natural Heritage Program

A great resource to learn more is through the Pennsylvania Natural Heritage Program, a partnership between the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission, the Pennsylvania Game Commission, and the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy in cooperation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. PNHP gathers and provides information on the location and status of important ecological resources (plants, vertebrates, invertebrates, ecological communities and geologic features). It provides current, reliable and objective ecological data and analysis to help guide conservation work and land-use planning.

Plant Native Species in Backyards and Gardens

In your own yards and gardens, you can use native plant species instead of non-native species. While not all non-natives are invasive, native plants will support a greater number of native animal species than non-natives.

There are many native alternatives to some of the more aggressive non-native invasive plant species that were once found at garden centers and greenhouses.

You can look at native alternatives to common non-native garden plants for your landscaping, says Ephraim. He recommends, for example, considering native low sedges such as Pennsylvania sedge (Carex pensylvanica) or plantain-leaf sedge (Carex plantaginea), in place of non-native daylilies, lily of the valley, or grasses, which can be invasive. Another example is blazing star (Liatris), with its pinkish-purple flowers, which is a wonderful native alternative to purple loosestrife, a non-native species that invades wetlands. The native plants provide habitat for birds and small wildlife, and are beautiful for landscape edging or under trees. Few require irrigation or mowing.

Become a Master Gardener, Steward or Naturalist

Other actions that you can take include becoming a Pennsylvania Master Gardener, Master Watershed Steward, or Master Naturalist. Through these programs, you can learn more about the native species in the region, understand where and why they occur, get engaged in volunteer programs and projects, connect with like-minded professionals and community scientists, and develop projects to help native species thrive.

Become A PCA Cooperator

There are other ways to get involved in native species conservation efforts by connecting with state agencies and conservation organizations helping native species thrive in Pennsylvania, and across the country, that work with community scientists and practitioners include Plant Conservation Alliances (PCAs). PCA’s are public-private partnerships of organizations and individuals that share the same goal: To protect native plants by ensuring that native plant populations and their communities are maintained, enhanced and restored. Learn more at: https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dcnr/conservation/wild-plants/ppcn.

Volunteer with WPC

You can also support the Conservancy’s work by volunteering in our land protection and stewardship program, helping to manage native plants on our preserves. Helping our community greening program plant community gardens and trees, and planting our many flower gardens, will also benefit our environment. There are also numerous opportunities to get involved in the work of our Watershed Conservation program, which aims to restore riparian areas.

Become a WPC Member

In addition to providing financial support for the Conservancy’s mission and work, Conservancy members learn firsthand from Conservancy staff about our programs, work, opportunities and the flora and fauna of the region. Through special hikes, talks, programs and other benefits, members receive information and resources on how they can help advance conservation efforts and help native species thrive in Western Pennsylvania. Learn more about becoming a WPC member at WaterLandLife.org/Donate.

Learn More Through Resources

PA Natural Heritage Program and Other Native Species Resources:

 

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About the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy:
The Western Pennsylvania Conservancy (WPC) enhances the region by protecting and restoring exceptional places. A private nonprofit conservation organization founded in 1932, WPC has helped establish 11 state parks, conserved more than a quarter million acres of natural lands, protected or restored more than 3,000 miles of rivers and streams, and assessed thousands of wildlife species and their habitats. The Conservancy owns and operates Frank Lloyd Wright’s Fallingwater, which is on the UNESCO World Heritage List and symbolizes people living in harmony with nature. In addition, WPC enriches our region’s cities and towns through 130 community gardens and other green spaces and thousands of trees that are planted with the help of more than 7,000 volunteers. The work of the Conservancy is accomplished through the support of more than 10,000 members. For more information, visit WaterLandLife.org or Fallingwater.org.