History:
Every creature that shows up in a garden serves a purpose, even if that purpose is to snack on the bountiful meal so conveniently planted close together. Despite the occasional pest, much of the wildlife we see in and around gardens is beneficial. Ladybugs, for example, are voracious consumers of aphids, tiny bugs that chew on leaves. Butterflies are pollinators, helping plants set their flowers and fruit by transferring pollen as they feed. Frogs also do their share against pests, eating slugs and mosquitoes that can attack garden plants or make the gardener's life difficult. Bumblebees, of course, are the best-known pollinators, responsible for perhaps 70% of all pollination that occurs as they collect nectar and pollen from flowers. Ants provide a variety of services, including aerating the soil with their digging, eating pests, and bringing nutrients into the soil.