Keeping Common Birds Common

Serviceberry is also known as juneberry or shadblow reflecting the fact it is one of the earliest trees to produce fruit in summer. The fruits resemble small blueberries. As many as 35 species of birds including Cedar Waxwings, Gray Catbirds, orioles, grosbeaks, cardinals and various thrushes, as well as chipmunks and other squirrels, are known to feast on its fruit, sometimes even before it is fully ripe.

When four Cedar Waxwings each plucked a crabapple fruit at the same time the result was this unusual shot. Crabapples (Malus sp.) produce high-sugar, winter persistent fruits that remain on the tree all winter long, creating colorful interest in gardens and providing crucial bird food especially in late winter when little else is available.