Nature is brilliant. She knows that living through months of drab browns and grays in the winter can be depressing.
She’s got a fix for that. I call it Christmas red.
Take a look outside your window and you’ll figure it out pretty quickly: red cardinals, red crabapples, red berries, red finches and many red woodpeckers. Granted they come in various shades and quantities of red (which by the way is my favorite color), but those little sparks of fire go a long way in a seemingly endless season of stone-cold dreariness.
Add just a dusting of snow (that’s about all I want and need) and now you have eyepopping reds worthy of every calendar and card on the planet. It’s hard to deny the perfect symmetry of beautiful red birds against a backdrop of sparkling snow.
Speaking of color, did you know that birds see a much wider range of colors than we do?
Humans only have three color receptors: red, green and blue, while birds have a fourth UV light receptor. Studies show that with the additional fourth receptor, birds can detect higher levels of contrast similar to 3D. Imagine how well they can see to find food and fly through vegetation. Who knows, maybe the reds we see may be hot pink to them. Scientists are already on it as they investigate how birds envision their food.
While we ooh and ahh over these visual winter confections of brightly colored birds and fruits, for wildlife red berries and crabapples are a matter of survival. Perhaps this is why my resident mockingbird guards his personal winterberry holly bush with such ferociousness.
I am convinced that this is the same mockingbird that returns to this bush year after year and for good reason. The shrub is full of hundreds of luscious plump red berries. They look so good that I’m tempted to eat them myself (they look like mini fireball candies to me).
It turns out though that they are not the tastiest of treats, even for birds. Low nutrition value and unpalatable chemical compounds often make them a food of last resort.
Despite their status as junk food in the bird world, the mockingbird is gobbling them down with gusto. The sad part is he refuses to share them with anyone else. If last year is any indicator, many berries will dry up and fall wasted to the ground due to his possessiveness. Perhaps the mockingbird needs to watch “The Grinch Who Stole Christmas” and learn some kindly lessons from him.
We could all use bigger hearts, especially at Christmastime.
Meanwhile, this year’s crabapple tree crop was the biggest I’ve ever had. My concern about the yellow-bellied sapsucker constantly drilling holes into the tree and killing it were certainly unfounded. The deep magenta red crabapples were the largest and juiciest ever and were promptly raided by yes, you guessed it, marauding squirrels.
In past years, the crabapples remained on the tree well into winter and provided sustenance for robins (we do occasionally have flocks of robins in the winter who mainly diet on fruits). This year will be different though as the squirrels have already nearly wiped them out.
In one sense, I take comfort from this knowing that time they spend eating crabapples is time spent NOT eating suet. The squirrels now call me the Grinch since I relocated the suet yet again to underneath the porch roof. This has prompted incredible feats of daring to no avail on their part. It’s hard to climb glass windows unless you’re Superman!
Maybe they will be wishing for Superman powers for Christmas!
The woodpecker family provides more sparks of color throughout the winter. Most have varying degrees of deep bright red on their heads and throats and even light shades of red on their bellies. This makes them easy standouts against winter’s muted colors. At least five different kinds come to our feeders on a daily basis. Often, they are quite vocal and no doubt wish for more peanuts, suet and sunflower seeds for Christmas. I’ll make sure they get them.
Some may argue that house finches are rosy rather than red. Male house finches can be quite varied in color from red to yellow to orange (females are a dull brown). The key is in what they eat. They acquire their colors from pigments in plants called carotenoids. The more carotenoids they eat, the redder their feathers become, making them more attractive to the females when spring comes around. They may not be the bright sparks of red like woodpeckers are, but their softer palette offers a light touch of brightness to the landscape.
The king of red, the male cardinal, is one of the most recognized birds in North America, and a very welcome sight in winter. On the coldest, bleakest day of the year, you can count on a cardinal to pick up your spirits.
It is no wonder that he is the No. 1 illustrated bird for Christmas cards.
While he envelopes himself in rich royal hues of red, his female partner is more subtle and sophisticated in her brownish-gray attire with red highlights on her beak, crest, wings, and tail. They are by far the most handsome couple on the bird social circuit.
The great joy of cardinals in winter comes when they arrive in flocks and literally light up the yard with their brightness. Not only do they create instant Christmas moments, but those moments repeat themselves over and over again throughout the entire winter season.
They, along with all the other beautiful red birds of the season, are the keepers of the flame that will soon become spring. How lucky we are that they are here to keep our winter spirits flying high in anticipation.
Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year everyone!