• Birds and small animals need shrubs and trees for shelter and nesting sites.Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images
  
  Native plants are essential to creating a natural wildlife habitat. Because native plants are indigenous to particular regions, they are familiar to local wildlife and are adapted to the climate and conditions of the area. When creating a wildlife habitat, select a variety of native plants to provide the food, shelter and nesting sites for wildlife in your area.
  
  

Shelter and Cover

• A wildlife habitat must provide hiding places to protect birds and small animals from predators, wind and rain. According to the University of Maine Cooperative Extension, adding vertical layers of plants from ground cover to tree tops provides homes for a variety of animals. Trees, shrubs, thorny bushes and tall grasses provide hiding places and nesting sites for many types of wildlife.
  
  

Food

• Plants that produce fruit, seeds and berries provide food for a diversity of wildlife. Nectar flowers attract butterflies, moths, hummingbirds and bees. In addition, many flowers and shrubs become host plants for insects that are eaten by birds, reptiles and amphibians. To ensure a steady food source throughout the year, plant an assortment of native plants that bear blossoms, berries or fruit at different seasons.
  
  

Northeast

• In the northeastern United States, native flowering plants that provide nectar and serve as host plants for caterpillars and insects include the sweet pepperbush, goldenrod and cardinal flower. According to the National Wildlife Federation, the showy, red berries of the winterberry, a deciduous shrub, are consumed by many bird species in fall and winter. The juicy, sour fruit of the black Tupelo or black gum tree is eaten by a variety of birds and mammals.
  
  

Southeast

• Cardinal flower, bee balm, milkweed and trumpet honeysuckle are native flowers that attract hummingbirds and butterflies in the Southeast. According to the Alabama Cooperative Extension, the seeds of the beautyberry or French mulberry are consumed by deer, small mammals and at least 40 different species of birds. Shrubs such as blueberry, blackberry and hawthorn provide fruit, cover and nesting sites for birds and small animals. The Alabama Extension recommends planting grasses such as Indian grass, broom sedge or switch grass along with various shrubs and briars to provide multiple levels of cover.
  
  

Southwest

• According to the National Wildlife Federation, the fruit of the skunk bush sumac is an important winter food source for many birds and small mammals in the Southwest. An ornamental evergreen tree, the Rocky Mountain juniper provides shelter and berries for wildlife. Native flowers for southwestern wildlife habitats include the desert marigold, Blackfoot daisy and desert sand verbena.
  
  

Northwest

• In the Pacific Northwest, the holly-leaf Oregon grape and western serviceberry are native shrubs that bear sweet fruit or berries eaten by a wide variety of birds and mammals. According to the National Wildlife Federation, grouse, deer and elk eat the foliage of the Douglas fir and birds and mammals consume its seeds. The large, bright flowers of the red columbine attract hummingbirds.
  
  

Midwest

• In the Midwest, the fruit of the northern hackberry tree is an excellent source of food in fall and winter for game birds and songbirds, according to the National Wildlife Federation. Native shrubs that provide food and cover for wildlife include the cranberry viburnum, gray dogwood and chokecherry. The wild columbine and swamp milkweed are excellent flowering plants for a midwestern wildlife habitat.