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native trees; non-native Wisteria; other things



Hi Carolinabirders,

Catching up on what happened while I was away...

The Bush Administration has proposed changes to the Endangered Species Act
which would allow the EPA to approve pesticide use without consulting
first with the USF&WS or the NMFS about potential threats to endangered
species. THe American Bird Conservancy, among other people, are
coordinating opposition to this move. Both Barbara Drummond, my mentor in
birding, and Robin Diaz, the Florida birder who first clued me in to the
Eurasian Kestrel down there (which is still showing up, BTW), sent word
about this. Details and instructions for helping oppose this plan are at
http://www.saveourbirds.org/
and
http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/FLBA.html#1047239290

Herschel Raney's latest essay focuses on birds and their efforts to mate.
It's a bit graphic in places, but definitely worth reading. And his new
book, "Snowmelt Timberdoodles and Other Excursions", is mentioned at the
bottom of the page:
http://www.gozarks.com/special/herschel/acts.htm

On Sun, 16 Mar 2003, Shantanu Phukan wrote:
>
> My second question: A second choice would be our native river birch
> (betula nigra). The advantage is that it would grow fast, and have
> interesting bark. But does the river birch have any bird-attracting
> qualities?

The foliage of birches is, I believe, very popular with certain butterfly
and moth caterpillars and other insects, and in turn is a great foraging
tree for insectivorous birds like warblers and vireos. It is a host plant
for Tiger Swallowtails and possibly Luna Moths, among many other things.
And I've seen many bird nest cavities excavated in birch limbs, although
it'll probably be several years before yours would be large enough for
that. It is touted for attracting not only goldfinches and siskins, as
Leah points out, but also redpolls...

> Althea (Rose of Sharon, Hibiscus) is another choice. It is not native, but
> it does have ample flowers. Does nayone know if hummers like its flowers?

It is listed on some web pages for attracting hummingbirds. However, it is
also listed under "Watch List A" among invasive exotic pest plants in
Tennessee, and as an invasive plant species in Illinois. The Brooklyn
Botanical Garden also describes it as invasive, and it is on a list of
prohibited plant species in the Kentucky land development code because it
seeds itself aggressively. I can go on, but I think you get the message...
Besides, our next-door neighbor has one (despite my best efforts to date),
and the local hummingbirds have shown a strong preference for our Salvias
and the nearby wild Trumpet Creepers over her Rose-of-Sharon. And judging
by our neighbor's tree, I'm not sure it's going to be the shape you want
anyway...

As long as I'm being a party pooper, On Sun, 16 Mar 2003, Sharon Turner
wrote:
>
> We just had our first Hummingbird of the year at 2:20 3/16/03
> A beautiful male,he has already juiced up on both feeders! At the moment
> he is sitting on a branch of a Wisteria vine that was used a lot last
> year.

Wisteria sinensis - the species found in most of our yards, native to
China - is one of North Carolina's worst invasive pest plants. It should
be removed anywhere and everywhere it grows. When the Ellerbe Creek
Watershed Association purchased the first six acres of its preserve, two
acres of it were solid Wisteria sinensis, nothing else could penetrate it.
They've been working on it for years and still have a few clumps they
haven't fully eradicated yet. The Japanese species, Wisteria floribunda,
is similarly bad.

Anyone who doesn't want to take my word for it, can listen to the North
Carolina Botanical Garden, which calls it a plant to avoid
http://www.ncbg.unc.edu/plants-to-avoid-SEUS.htm
or The Nature Conservancy
http://tncweeds.ucdavis.edu/moredocs/wisspp01.pdf
or the USDA Forest Service
http://www.srs.fs.usda.gov/pubs/rpc/1999-03/rpc_99mar_27.htm
or the Plant Conservation Alliance
http://www.nps.gov/plants/alien/fact/wist1.htm
or the Georgia Exotic Pest Plant Council
http://www.gaeppc.org/exotalk1.html
Again, I can keep going, if anybody isn't convinced yet.

There is a native species, Wisteria frutescens. It tends to be ignored by
landscapers because it produces fewer flowers and a less intense odor.
However, unlike its Asian cousins, the American Wisteria doesn't form
impenetrable mats and crowd out other plant species. And its flowers are
just as appealing to hummingbirds, maybe more so because it smells less
and so the visually-foraging hummers don't have to compete as much for
nectar with smell-foraging insects.

Back to the original question, about bird-attracting native trees with a
growth form vaguely like birch or Sourwood -
On Sun, 16 Mar 2003, Shantanu Phukan wrote:
>
> Any other suggestions--besides redbud or magnolia.

First thought would be some kind of native fruit tree, like Persimmon,
Wild Black Cherry, Red Mulberry (*NOT* White or Black), or maybe American
Plum (though the plum, like the Rose-of-Sharon, might not give you the
shape you want). All attract lots of bugs with both flowers and foliage,
and so indirectly attract lots of birds, and you could either eat the
fruit yourself or leave it for the critters. Hackberry, just as good as
all of the above for birds and perhaps better for butterfly larvae, though
no edible fruit. Ironwood (Carpinus caroliniana); seeds might draw
granivorous songbirds almost as much as birch, though I suspect it might
grow even more slowly than Sourwood. If it's wet enough, maybe Black Gum
(Nyssa sylvatica).

One last note: folks shopping for native bird-attracting plants like
Shantanu might want to know that I've added a section to the Duke Natural
History Society links page on places to shop for native plants. Everybody
around here probably knows about Niche Gardens by now, but I've discovered
a few lesser-known places like Mellow Marsh Farm and Cure Nursery, both in
Pittsboro, and a few other worthwhile mail-order places around the
southeastern US which sell exclusively or at least mostly native species.
Among the bunch of them they sell things which folks have previously asked
about on this listserv, like Eastern Red Cedar, and some which are tough
to find, like the "Lost Camellia" (aka Benjamin Franklin Tree), which is
extinct in the wild, and the White Walnut, which is pretty close. See
http://www.biology.duke.edu/dnhs/
click on "Online Resources" and scroll down to the plant section.

Good birding, and happy planting,

Josh


Joshua S. Rose
Duke University
Department of Biology (Zoology, R.I.P.)

jsr6@duke.edu
http://www.duke.edu/~jsr6/