Greetings All

I am surprised that a yard full of blackberries sees little wildlife use. My first Washington Rose-breasted Grosbeak was eating blackberries in my yard. I've seen House Finch bills stained deep purple from eating them, and recently, I scared some Mule Deer off (because those particular berries were intended for a pie for me).

I've seen Fox Sparrows actively eating blackberries as well other sparrows. Recently, I watched dozens of wasps actively feeding, head deep, in old blackberries that had started to rot (don't know if the wasps were native or not). And I can't say that I spend any significant time really watching what's feeding on the blackberries vs just being among them.

Plus, even from a cover perspective, blackberries are one of the few plants that seem to repel the neighborhood cats (but we won't go onto that subject) -- but the importance of dense cover as well as food is not to be overlooked.

Cheers
Steven Mlodinow