Guess what I found at home! (1 Viewer)

gthang

Ford Focus Fanatic: mmmmmm... 3.1415926535.....

• Jul 4, 2004

• #1

I found a patch of berries in a row of pine trees lining our property's boundary with the street. I snapped some photos, and when I got back in the house, I downloaded the pictures, opened Netscape, and headed to ENature.com, to try and ID them.

Turns out they are White Mulberries (Morus alba). So now that I know what they are, I have a question for you.

I want to see a Cedar Waxwing before the year is out, and hopefully these berries are a food eaten by these birds. So, what berries do Cedar Waxwings favor?

 

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steve_nova

Well-known member

• Jul 4, 2004

• #2

Hi gthang, firstly these are not Morus alba or indeed any other member of the genus Morus. Try looking under Rubus as that is the genus that this belongs too. The five sepals at the back of the compound fruit give it away.

I think the type of fruits these birds favour are usually members of the Rosaceae such as Amelanchier at this time of year, and later members of Crataegus and Sorbus.

 

Last edited: Jul 4, 2004

Michael Frankis

conehead

• Jul 4, 2004

• #3

Hi Gthang,

I gotta agree with Steve, these are Rubus fruticosus (Blackberry, a.k.a. Bramble) or another closely related species of Rubus (there's dozens of 'microspecies' in this genus).

Mulberries are trees with heart-shaped leaves about 10-20cm long

As for the berries Cedar Waxwings like, one favourite is Juniper berries (hence the name - early US settlers confused Juniper for Cedars). Others, as Steve says, Amelanchier (Juneberry), Sorbus (Rowan), Crataegus (Hawthorn), and many more - just about any tree that has berries on.

Michael

 

gthang

Ford Focus Fanatic: mmmmmm... 3.1415926535.....

• Jul 4, 2004

• #4

Dang, the picture of the mulberries looked very convincing, and I couldn't find any other trees in the area that resembled the berries I saw. Also, the leaves in the Mulberry picture on ENature.com looked the same as the leaves that our berries have. So you can see why I came to the White Mulberry conclusion.

 

steve_nova

Well-known member

• Jul 5, 2004

• #5

Hi gthang, the nearest that any Rubus get to becoming trees are upright suckering shrubs up to a height of 12 ft. As Michael says, they are a very complex group with some species containing many microspecies. I beleive that some species do have heart shaped leaves (don't know the American species) but none really develop a permanent trunk.
Do you think that it may have been rambling through a tree instead as a support which would be the most likely condition?

 

KC Foggin

Very, very long time member

Supporter

• Jul 5, 2004

• #6

From someone who grew up with acres of blackberry brambles and ate my fair share of them, I can tell you that these are indeed, Blackberries. We used to burn them down to the ground each fall.

 

gthang

Ford Focus Fanatic: mmmmmm... 3.1415926535.....

• Jul 5, 2004

• #7

I forgot to mention, that the berries were not only a dark purple and red (as in the photo), but there were orange, yellow, and green ones too.

 

Michael Frankis

conehead

• Jul 5, 2004

• #8

gthang said:

I forgot to mention, that the berries were not only a dark purple and red (as in the photo), but there were orange, yellow, and green ones too.

Click to expand...

Hi Gthang,

Try tasting one of each - and you'll soon find th at the black ones are ripe (and delicious!:eat, and the others not ready yet :eek!: . . . they'll turn black as they ripen

Michael

 

gthang

Ford Focus Fanatic: mmmmmm... 3.1415926535.....

• Jul 6, 2004

• #9

that smily eating the arrow is starting to frighten me... I could choke on it!

 

gthang

Ford Focus Fanatic: mmmmmm... 3.1415926535.....

• Jul 6, 2004

• #10

Would Cedar Waxwings eat blackberries? Trying to see if I have a chance of seeing one during the fall...

 

Michael Frankis

conehead

• Jul 6, 2004

• #11

gthang said:

Would Cedar Waxwings eat blackberries? Trying to see if I have a chance of seeing one during the fall...

Click to expand...

Hi Gthang,

They normally prefer to get their berries in trees, but will sometimes come low, in which case yes, they would eat blackberries.

Michael