15 Backyard Birds That Eat Berries

Bluebirds

After insects dwindle, bluebirds heavily depend on berries, and 
small wintering groups are always on the lookout. Winterberry is practically guaranteed to bring in nearby bluebirds, but its bright red berries disappear fast once they spot them. Evergreen holly, hawthorn and native junipers like eastern red cedar provide a much bigger banquet, attracting bluebirds for several weeks. Almost any berries are fair game, including those of poison ivy. In late winter, look for bluebirds at the fuzzy spires of staghorn sumac.

American Robins

Robins have something of a seasonal split personality—in summer, they’re backyard birds, hopping about the lawn. In winter, they retreat to woods’ edges and stay in flocks. In recent years, some individuals have begun to buck the usual trend and become feeder regulars. Look for a single backyard robin, or an entire roaming flock, at hawthorn, holly, juniper, pyracantha, hackberry, beautyberry, arrowwood viburnum, toyon, sumac and other plants with persistent berries that hang on branches through winter.

Thrushes

Robins and bluebirds are the thrushes you usually see in winter. But the varied thrush of the Northwest and the widespread hermit thrush (above) also stay all winter. Hermit thrushes and varied thrushes feed on a variety of berries, often alone.

Check out the top berry trees and shrubs birds love.

Townsend’s Solitaire

Solitaires live up to their name in winter, each fiercely guarding its own chosen trees from berry-eating relatives. They gobble the juniper berries as well as those of the mistletoe that grows on the trees. In a scanty year for juniper berries, the high-fat mistletoe makes up the difference in solitaires’ diets.

Northern Cardinal

You might think of northern cardinals as seed eaters, but they also love berries as a sweet treat. Evergreen berry-producing trees and shrubs such as winterberry offer not only food but also shelter for winter visitors such as cardinals. Crabapples are also a favorite food for redbirds.

Cedar Waxwing

A juniper tree (Juniperus virginiana) is responsible for the common name of cedar waxwings, which flock to the blue-gray fruit in winter. “Flocking” is the word, because these social birds do nearly everything as a group. They have no home territory except at nesting time. Berries are the bulk of their diet year-round, and finding food motivates their movements. Look for wandering winter waxwings at flowering crab, hawthorn, mountain ash, deciduous or evergreen hollies, junipers, toyon and more—any berry plant that offers a feast big enough for a flock.

Yellow-rumped Warbler

The wood warbler that winters most widely in North America owes its success to myrtle berries (Myrtus), including bayberry and other natives. Unlike nearly every other bird that eats the berries—bluebirds, thrushes, robins, waxwings, flickers and more
—yellow-rumps, once called myrtle warblers, are able to digest the waxy coating, transforming it into fat that helps them survive the cold. They also eat the berries of juniper, poison ivy, poison oak and Virginia creeper. If you’re near a bayberry or other myrtle, listen for a signature sharp chip.

Tree Swallow

Tree swallows, the only other birds capable of turning myrtle wax into vital fat, join yell0w-rumped warblers at myrtles. They’re often seen feeding on bayberries in their coastal wintering areas. During the breeding season, these birds primarily feed on insects.

Woodpeckers

One at a time is the general rule for woodpeckers at winter berries. Even though they’re mostly singletons, what a variety you may see! Every woodpecker, flicker and sapsucker that’s around in winter seeks out berries, especially poison oak and poison ivy. These may be a problem for humans, but to birds, they’re a prize. Just like other berry-eaters, woodpeckers “plant” seeds of the berries they eat via their droppings, which can sprout into a welcome bonus—or extra weeding duty.

Northern Mockingbirds

An entertaining bully, this big, bold bird is a loner in winter. Expect occasional skirmishes at the berries, because northern mockingbirds are notoriously territorial. Bittersweet, viburnums, crabapples, hawthorns, hollies, pyracantha, roses with small hips (including the invasive multiflora) and a long list of other berries go down the hatch.

Brown Thrasher

A wintering brown thrasher may also be drawn to the same fruits and berries as mockingbirds, but these related birds have much better manners. Grow native shrubs to provide shelter and food for them.

Gray Catbird

If you’ve ever spotted a gray catbird eating from your grape jelly or orange feeder, it will come as no surprise to you that these birds are fruit lovers. While these songbirds primarily feed on insects, they’re also suckers for sweets and will eat berries when they’re available. They especially enjoy fruit from dogwood, winterberry and serviceberry plants.

Indigo Bunting

These colorful birds feed on a mix of seeds, insects and berries. Strawberries, blackberries, serviceberries, blueberries and elderberries are some fruity favorites on the menu for indigo buntings.

Pine Grosbeak

These birds of the far north delight visitors lucky enough to see them in their backyards during winter. Grow shrubs full of berries, such as mountain ash, crabapples and other fruit trees to attract this species.

Scarlet Tanager

Known to feast on insects, including bees and wasps, brightly colored scarlet tanagers also enjoy sweet treats such as blackberries, raspberries and mulberries. During spring migration,  you might also spot one at a feeder with oranges and jelly.