Rowan berries very early? (1 Viewer)

[Lucky Birder]

Is it me, or are Rowan (Mountain Ash) berries extra early this year? The tree in my garden has had ripe berries on since the middle of July.

 

[AndyC]

It could be that the tree is under 'stress'. If, for example, it is short of water due to dry weather, it will produce seed as quickly as it can before it dies. It's the trees' way of ensuring survival of the species in hard conditions.

Andyc

 

[Mary Evelyn]

Our Rowan (a baby )has no berries at the moment but we are in the North East.On our 12 mile journey to work we pass quite a lot but no berries yet. :egghead:

 

[LJH]

The rowan trees outside our office in Bradford have berries on, also I think (I'll have to check) the ones up the road from us here in Huddersfield

 

[Jos Stratford]

I was commenting on this to a friend a week or so back - all the Rowans are already laden with red berries up here in Lithuania too

 

[John N]

The Berries are ripe in our part of the West Midlands as well.

 

[solentbirder]

They seem early down here in Hampshire too. I was just thinking about it the other day.

 

[the bird]

does this indicate a possible shortage of food stuffs for our wintering thrushes etc, or do Rowan have two fruiting periods?


The Bird

 

[Brian Bullough]

My Rowan tree is laden with berries (Coastal Northumberland), I noticed a blackbird feeding one to a young bird they seem to feed on them then leave alone for a day or two but the tree is always completely stripped by the end of August,if it was not so large I would have liked to net it and see if they would stay on for the Autumn/Winter.
Brian

 

[Gill Osborne]

I just noticed this too only last week as I drove past the caravan park on my way home!
Certainly seem VERY early to me though *hangs head in shame* I seem to have forgotten to make a note of the first date I saw berries last year in my 2004 diary - BIG lapse on my part!!! :flowers:

Perhaps it IS just because of the long dry spell we've been having over the past few months as has been already said.

Gill

 

[florall]

My Rowan tree is laden with berries, I noticed a blackbird feeding one to a young bird they seem to feed on them then leave alone for a day or two but the tree is always completely stripped by the end of August

This happened here last year, our first year of fruiting. I was very disappointed. I've not noticed the blackbirds feeding on it yet this year, but I don't suppose it will be long.

I wonder why some do get left for autumn/winter, because there is no doubt they do. Presumably, it is in areas where there are so many trees, that the local birds can't eat it all, thus leaving some for later continental visitors.

 

[Mary Evelyn]

Please ignore my previous post.I have passed over a 100 Rowan today and they are all laden with berries.
The only one that isn't, is my youngster in our front garden. :flowers:

 

[Lucky Birder]

As I thought, a common phenomenon this year and in Lithuania too!!! Don't know what it means or what effect it will have.

 

[Stewart J.]

Wifey and I noticed many with ripe berries in Strathclyde area last week, very early.
Stewart

 

[Ivan]

Rowan berries on the three trees in and around my garden in North Suffolk have always had red berries by the end of July and NO berries by the end of August. The blackbirds sit in the trees all day gorging themselves, one or two greenfinches have a try but get chased away by the blackbirds. They seem to be mostly youngsters that take berries at this time of year despite abundant other food being available. I have noticed no change in the timing of this feeding pattern over the twenty years we have had the rowan trees.

Ivan

 

[alanhill]

I had also noticed the early fruiting rowans in the Manchester area and wondered what effect this might have on winter migrants. Certainly fieldfares and redwings are big consumers of rowan berries, but will the bulk of the crop be gone by the time they normally arrive here? And last year there was a big influx of waxwings, again feeding on rowan berries. Usually we have a larger number of berry feeding winter migrants when there is a shortage in northern Europe and Scandinavia, but apart from the comment from Lithuania I don't know what is happening in other countries.

Incidentally I thought I saw a small flock of fieldfares in our local park the other day, but I didn't have my binoculars with me and may have been hallucinating! Could it have been fieldfares (or redwings); surely far too early but then some fieldfares breed in the Pennines, don't they?

I would like to know more about the issues around the rowan berries and their role as a source of food for resident and migrant birds. Any experts out there?

Alan Hill

 

[Angus T]

As is usual by August, my Rowan have been stripped of berries by flocks of thrushes, Mostly Mistle and Blackbirds. I rarely see any ripe berries so can't compare ripening dates

 

[Corax67]

Rowan trees are laden in Gwent & Breconshire too - thought I was only imagining they were early as I have not recorded berry dates for a few years.

Could this be a forerunner to another bumper year of Waxwing, or will the thrushes beat them to the bumper berry harvest ? ? ? ?

 

[alanhill]

When I first joined this forum all the really difficult questions were answered (very satisfactorily in my opinion) by Michael Frankis. Where are you now Michael - we need you?

Alan Hill

 

[rollingthunder]

Bear in mind that berries need to have been pollinated as flowers - the weather conditions whilst in flower could have been favourable for pollination by insects i.e. warm and dry - thus pollination in a short period of time will lead to quicker formation of fruit just as bad weather will lead to non-pollination and poor crop as often happens with early-flowering Blackthorn - sometimes Blackthorn flowers can still be out when Hawthorn bursts early...Loz.