Saturday 1st November 2014 - Sale Moor

Mistletoe (Viscum album)

Mistletoe was seen growing wild in a hawthorn tree in the centre of Sale Moor. We believe this is the first recorded sighting in this area.

Britain is the northern edge of  the distribution in Europe and within Britain, Mistletoe is found mostly in the south, particularly in Worcestershire, Herefordshire and Gloucestershire, in the lowlands around the river Severn and its major tributaries. However recent evidence suggests its distribution may be spreading further east and north, perhaps in conjunction with climate change factors.

Mistletoe (Viscum album)

The distinctive white berries are distributed only by a few bird species, particularly the mistle thrush, which usually swallows the berries and excretes the seeds still in sticky slime that will stick on to twigs and braches. The blackcap is another mistletoe specialist, but they swallow on;y the berry skin and pulp, wiping every seed off their beaks individually, potentially directly on to a host tree. The number of overwintering blackcaps has increased in recent years in southern Britain, perhaps from climate change and this may well have resulted in an increased distribution.

For further information about mistletoe, see the very informative web site run by Jonathan Briggs: http://mistletoe.org.uk/

Maurice Lees