Yew is notoriously poisonous, however the fleshy berries or more correctly arils, but not the seeds within, are not poisonous http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taxus_baccata. Hence these fruits are among the various wild foods that are available for birds to eat as they feed up before the harsh winter weather arrives. Today I watched a mixture of different species of bird feeding in the Yew trees in St Luke's church yard. I was first alerted to the feeding birds by the loud rattle of several Mistle Thrushes (at least six birds). My approach disturbed them and as they flew off some Redwings that were in the top of a nearby trees joined them. I then heard and saw four Nuthatches along with several Starlings, a couple of Blackbirds and a Chaffinch. A Grey Squirrel was also participating in the feast. Meanwhile Blue and Great Tits were flitting amongst other trees. All this was ended when a Sparrowhawk flew through flushing the birds into the sky. She failed to catch anything that time, but I'm sure she'll be back many more times whilst those juicy arils are attracting so many potential meals for her!
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