Ivy Berries

Today's the day …………………………. to save the best till last

Shelter, foodstuff, pollen source - ivy is such a valuable plant for a variety of wildlife.  If you look closely at any ivy just now, you will see that it is covered with these rather attractive berries that have carried on where the flowers left off.  The calorie-rich ivy berries are loved by birds, including the song thrush, mistle thrush, redwing, blackbird and blackcap.

Although the berries appear in November, birds don’t tend to eat them until January or February – shorter-lived berries such as rowan and hawthorn are eaten first, leaving the longer-lasting ivy berries until later.  According to the RSPB, ivy berries contain nearly as many calories as Mars bars, gram for gram.

So perhaps the birds are saving the best till last ……………………...?