Holly Tree Research Articles

Holly Berries

WILL some learned botanist, or Darwinian theorist, kindly inform me through the columns of NATURE why some holly berries appear obnoxious to birds? This is a great holly neighbourhood, and there are at present several trees actually loaded with ripe berries; the ground is also thickly strewed with berries beneath the trees, and yet not a single species of bird appears to eat them. Last winter the holly trees bore an abundance of berries, but the majority of the trees were stripped by the migratory Turdi, &c., as early as the beginning of February. I presume, in the “struggle for existence” these berries, obnoxious to birds, will stand a better chance of propagating and increasing that peculiar variety, and in course of time raise a distinct and well marked species.

Southey's “the holly tree”

Southey's “the holly tree”

Southey's “the holly tree.”

Southey's “the holly tree.”