Photos -> Mistletoe

Common Name: Mistletoe

Latin Name: Viscum album

Description: Mistletoe is parasitic, drawing its nourishment from the host plant. Its white berries are food for birds such as phainopepla and western bluebird. Berries not edible by humans, but the thick clump of shrubbery makes a good place to hide a bird nest. Western sycamore is the tallest native tree in the preserve, often growing along streambeds and reaching 40 - 50' tall. Deciduous, it loses its leaves in the winter. Small and large branches often drop, providing nesting cavities for birds such as woodpeckers, bluebirds, wrens, tree swallows and barn owls.

Location: Los Penasquitos Canyon Preserve, close to the Ranch, growing on western sycamore tree.

Date: October 29, 2006

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