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Native Landscaping in Spokane: About Our Area

September 24, 2026
By Olivia Bailey

Biodiversity Analysis of Spokane County

Spokane County is home to a remarkable variety of landscapes. From the dry, rocky terrain of the channeled scablands to the forests surrounding Mount Spokane, and the wetlands and riparian habitats along the Spokane River, the county contains a diverse collection of native landscaping and ecosystems. These environments support a wide range of plants, mammals, birds, insects, fish, and other wildlife.

However, Spokane County is also experiencing rapid growth and development. As communities expand, agricultural land changes, roads are constructed, and natural areas become increasingly fragmented. Protecting biodiversity is not simply about preserving individual species. It is about maintaining connected landscapes and ecological systems that allow wildlife and people to thrive together.

A Landscape Where Ecosystems Meet

Spokane County sits in an ecologically important transition zone. The dry grasslands and shrub-steppe ecosystems of the Columbia Plateau meet the forested landscapes associated with the North Central Rockies. This meeting of different ecological regions creates a landscape with significant variety.

The county includes ponderosa pine forests, shrub-steppe, Palouse prairie remnants, wetlands, streams, riparian corridors, and higher-elevation forests. Each habitat provides different resources for wildlife, including food, water, nesting locations, shelter, and seasonal migration routes. This diversity also makes habitat connectivity especially important. Wildlife does not recognize property boundaries, city limits, or county zoning lines. Animals need to move between feeding areas, breeding grounds, water sources, and seasonal habitats. When natural areas become isolated from one another, wildlife populations can become increasingly vulnerable.

This issue is particularly important in Spokane County because less than 10% of the county is public land. Much of the remaining landscape is privately owned, meaning that conservation often depends on how development, agriculture, roads, and open spaces are planned and managed across private and public properties.

Three Important Ecosystems

Channeled Scablands

The Channeled Scablands are one of Eastern Washington’s most distinctive landscapes. Created largely through massive prehistoric floods, these areas are characterized by exposed basalt, rocky terrain, dry grasses, and limited water availability, often facing droughts in the hot summer months.

Although the landscape can appear harsh, it supports plants and animals specifically adapted to arid conditions. Drought-resistant vegetation provides food and cover for small mammals, insects, and birds. The open landscape also provides important habitat for migratory and grassland-associated bird species.

Because these ecosystems have developed under relatively dry conditions, changes in land use and climate can place additional pressure on species that already operate within narrow the environmental limits of the native landscaping in the Spokane area.

North Central Rockies

Moving toward the higher elevations around Mount Spokane and the Idaho-Washington border, the landscape becomes increasingly forested. Ponderosa pine, grand fir, hemlock, and other coniferous species create habitat for mammals, birds, insects, and countless other organisms.

These forests are important not only because they provide habitat, but also because they contribute to watershed health, soil stability, carbon storage, and recreational opportunities. Large, forested areas allow wildlife to move through the landscape. Maintaining connections between forest patches can be particularly important for species that require extensive ranges or avoid heavily developed areas.

Wetlands and Riparian Areas

Water-based ecosystems are among the most productive and important habitats in the county. Wetlands, streams, marshes, and riparian areas associated with the Spokane River and surrounding waterways provide food, shelter, nesting habitat, and breeding areas for many species.

Riparian vegetation also has important functions for people. Healthy vegetation along waterways can stabilize streambanks, filter pollutants, reduce erosion, slow stormwater runoff, and provide shade that helps maintain suitable water temperatures. Wetlands can also store water and help reduce the effects of flooding. In this way, protecting biodiversity and protecting community infrastructure are often closely connected.

Wildlife of Spokane County

Spokane County and the surrounding native landscaping supports a wide variety of wildlife, including large mammals, small mammals, birds, fish, insects, and other organisms.

Mammals

Large mammals such as elk, moose, white-tailed deer, and mule deer can be found throughout the region. Forests and open areas provide important feeding and shelter opportunities, while riparian corridors provide access to water.

Urban and suburban expansion can make it more difficult for these animals to move safely. As development extends into previously undeveloped areas, wildlife encounters with people and vehicles tend to increase. Mule deer and other large mammals are especially vulnerable when roads divide habitat. A road may seem like a small feature on a map, but for wildlife it can become a significant barrier to movement.

Birds

Bird diversity is particularly noticeable in Spokane County’s wetlands and open spaces. Areas such as Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge provide important habitat for migrating, breeding, and resident birds.

Waterfowls, shorebirds, songbirds, raptors, and other species use wetlands and surrounding habitats throughout different parts of the year. Ducks and geese depend on water and wetland vegetation, while songbirds may rely on forests, shrubs, and grasslands for food and nesting.

Birds are also great indicators of environmental health. Changes in bird populations can provide clues about changes in habitat quality, water conditions, food availability, and climate.

Spokane Native Vegetation and Landscaping

Plants form the foundation of every ecosystem. Spokane County’s vegetation varies significantly depending on elevation, soil, moisture, and temperature.

Ponderosa pine forests dominate many areas, while wetlands support sedges and other water-tolerant plants. Remnant Palouse prairie communities contain native bunchgrasses and wildflowers, including arrow leaf balsamroot. Higher elevations around Mount Spokane support unique plant communities, including alpine grasses and species such as the bride’s bonnet.

Protecting Spokane’s native landscaping and vegetation is important because native plants provide food and shelter for wildlife while also helping maintain soil health, water quality, and ecosystem stability.

Increased Threat of Habitat Fragmentation

One of the greatest challenges facing biodiversity in Spokane County is habitat loss and fragmentation. Habitat fragmentation occurs when large, continuous areas of natural habitat are divided into smaller pieces by roads, housing developments, agriculture, commercial development, and other land uses.

Imagine a large forest as a single neighborhood connected by roads and pathways. If new highways, fences, and buildings are constructed through the middle of that neighborhood, the animals living there may no longer be able to reach the resources they need. Over time, these smaller habitats “islands” can become isolated. Small populations may have fewer opportunities to find mates, access food, or move away from environmental disturbances.

The result is not always an immediate disappearance of wildlife. Instead, fragmentation can gradually reduce the resilience of populations and make them more vulnerable to disease, climate change, fire, invasive species, and other pressures.

Human-Wildlife Conflicts

As development moves outward from established communities, people and wildlife increasingly occupy the same spaces. Deer, moose, elk, and other animals may travel through residential areas in search of food or water. This can create conflicts with homeowners, pets, agricultural operations, and vehicles. Wildlife-vehicle collisions are especially concerning because they can cause serious injuries to both animals and people.

One way to reduce these conflicts is to identify important wildlife movement corridors before development occurs. If planners understand where animals regularly travel, roads and new development can potentially be designed to preserve those connections.

Water Quality and Pollution

Water is another major component of biodiversity protection. Wastewater, stormwater runoff, agricultural activity, and pollutants entering streams can affect aquatic organisms and the animals that depend on those water sources.

Pollution does not necessarily remain in one location. A contaminant entering a small stream can eventually move downstream, affecting larger waterways and connected ecosystems. Maintaining healthy riparian vegetation and wetlands can help reduce these impacts to the native landscaping in Spokane. Natural vegetation can capture nutrients and pollutants, slow runoff, stabilize soil, and provide habitat for aquatic and terrestrial species.

Water Availability and Climate Change

Spokane County’s dry summers already place pressure on freshwater resources. Changes in precipitation patterns, increasing temperatures, drought, wildfire, and shifting seasonal water availability could increase these pressures.

For wildlife, water availability affects nearly every part of the life cycle. Animals need water directly, while plants require it to grow and produce food. Changes in vegetation can then affect insects, birds, mammals, and the larger food web.

Climate change can also cause species to shift their ranges. Some species may move toward higher elevations or cooler areas, while others may struggle to adapt quickly enough. This makes connected habitats even more important. Wildlife corridors can give species opportunities to move as environmental conditions change.

Why Biodiversity Matters to People

Biodiversity is often talked about as though it is only about protecting wildlife. Healthy ecosystems provide services that directly benefit communities.

Natural areas help:

Improve water quality

Store and filter water

Reduce runoff and buffer flooding

Improve soil fertility

Support pollinators and control pests

Produce food

Store carbon and limit CO2 in the atmosphere

Provide recreational, educational, and scientific opportunities

Contribute to the cultural and aesthetic value of the community

These benefits are often called ecosystem services.

A wetland, for example, is not simply a place where birds live. It can also function as natural infrastructure by storing water during storms and filtering pollutants before they reach rivers and groundwater. Similarly, a forest is not simply a collection of trees. Forests provide wildlife habitats, stabilize soil, store carbon, influence local water cycles, and provide recreational opportunities.

Conservation in a Growing County

The challenge for native landscaping in Spokane is not necessarily choosing between development and conservation. A more effective approach is finding ways for development and biodiversity protection to coexist. Planning decisions made today can determine whether future communities remain surrounded by connected natural landscapes or whether remaining habitat becomes increasingly fragmented.

Spokane County uses tools such as Critical Areas Ordinances and natural-resource mapping to identify and protect environmentally sensitive areas, including wetlands and important habitats. At the state level, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife uses habitat and landscape analysis to identify areas where additional protection may be needed. One major focus is maintaining connections between undeveloped areas so wildlife can continue to move through the landscape.

Community science can also contribute to conservation. Projects such as iNaturalist allow residents, students, researchers, and other community members to document plants and wildlife. These observations can help create a better understanding of where species occur and how populations may change over time.

Prevention

According to Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife guidance, effective wildlife planning should focus on maintaining large, connected areas of native vegetation rather than protecting isolated habitat patches.

Several strategies can help:

Protect large habitat areas: Keeping large, undeveloped areas intact gives wildlife more room to feed, reproduce, shelter, and move.

Maintain wildlife corridors: Connecting forests, grasslands, wetlands, and other habitats to allow animals to move between otherwise isolated populations.

Limit unnecessary roads and barriers: Roads can fragment habitat and increase wildlife mortality. Careful transportation planning can reduce these impacts.

Protect native vegetation: Native plants support local food webs and are generally better adapted to regional environmental conditions.

Concentrate development in already developed areas: Higher-density development within existing urban areas can reduce the pressure to continually expand into natural landscapes.

Incorporate habitat into open-space planning: Parks and open spaces can provide greater ecological value when they are intentionally connected to larger habitat networks.

Planning for the Future

Spokane County is at an important point in its development. Population growth and expanding communities will continue to influence the landscape, but growth does not always have to mean the loss of biodiversity or native landscaping around the Spokane area. The decisions made about where homes, roads, businesses, farms, and public spaces are located can either create additional barriers for wildlife or help preserve connections between important ecosystems.

The most successful approach will likely involve cooperation among county and city governments, state agencies, private landowners, conservation organizations, researchers, farmers, developers, and community members. Biodiversity protection is ultimately about maintaining the ability of a landscape to function. Protecting these systems today helps ensure that Spokane County remains not only a place where people can live and grow, but also a place where native species and natural ecosystems can continue to thrive.

Sources:

WDFW: Landscape Planning for Washington’s Wildlife