May is garden for wildlife month.  Instead of kicking animals off their lawn some are welcoming them by certifying their yards for wildlife habitat.

Judy Edwards says she enjoys seeing  animals run through her yard, "We just had a hawk fly through about an hour ago, we have an owl that comes and visits we have possums, raccoons, squirrels, rabbits."

She says having a certified habitat creates an oasis in her backyard, "Peace, relaxation, calm. You leave the world behind when you come and just listen to the birds sing as you can hear right now."

Her neighbor Elizabeth Caudle says she has all four requirements needed to have a certified yard, "We have  the water, we have the food, we have the shelter and we have the nesting."

Elizabeth says they only need a few more to reach the community habitat certification level, "We need desperately to get 10 more homes to make that happen."

David Mizejewski is a naturalist with the National Wildlife Federation.  He says certifying your yard helps the ecosystem, "Doing something simple and fun that also beautifies your yard and also helps our the wildlife in the local environment."

Anyone can receive certification for a wildlife habitat.  Even if you live in an apartment and only have a balcony.