Press Releases - November/December 2007
Item 7

No. 2007/12/87
December 2007

Can you spot a Mistle Thrush this Christmas?

While the Robin is the bird that usually springs to mind at this time of the year, spare a thought for the Mistle Thrush this Christmas.

Whilst everyone will be seeing Robins around this time, (how many of your Christmas cards depict a Robin?), the Mistle Thrush will largely go unnoticed. It is at this time of the year that this larger cousin of the more familiar Song Thrush comes into its own. It is one of our earliest breeding birds. Male Mistle Thrushes can often be heard in full song over the Christmas period, often from the top of the highest tree around, not stopping even during wild and windy weather, lending weight to its old name of ‘storm cock’.

All is not well with this devourer of mistletoe; its scientific name ‘viscivorus’ comes from its penchant for mistletoe berries, viscum (mistletoe) and vorare (to devour). The bird has been undergoing a steady decline, leading to it being included on the amber list of birds of conservation concern. British Trust for Ornithology led research has shown that the population has fallen by 35% over the last twenty-five years.

Mistle Thrushes feed on soft fruits and berries during the winter months, and will often vigorously defend large clumps of mistletoe and well laden hollies from all-comers with the distinctive football-rattle like call, as it chases off another raider, can often be heard. This habit not only ensures them a steady supply of food but is also proven to give them a head start in the breeding season. Birds that guard berries have been shown to produce bigger and earlier clutches than those that do not.

During Victorian times it was believed that the seed of the mistletoe would only germinate if it first passed through the body of a Mistle Thrush. This may hold some truth, as some seeds do indeed germinate more quickly if they have passed through a birds gut. If, as some suggest, mistletoe and holly are in short supply this year, Mistle Thrushes will turn to gardens in search of other berries.

You might have mistletoe in your home, but will you have its bird namesake in your garden? Keep an eye out for this big, bold and beautiful thrush this Christmas.

If you are concerned about the decline of the Mistle Thrush and would like to learn more about this fascinating bird, including information on how to tell the difference between the Mistle and Song Thrush, please contact the BTO on 01842 750050 and ask for the Garden BirdWatch team, or email or write to GBW team, BTO, The Nunnery, Thetford, IP24 2PU.

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Notes for Editors

1. The Mistle Thrush is the largest member of the thrush family to breed in Britain. Sometimes both birds from a pair will defend a food source and it has been shown that birds that guard berries produce bigger and earlier clutches than those that do not guard berries. It is estimated that the British population is around 200,000 pairs, down from 300,000 pairs twenty-five years ago.
2. The BTO/CJ Garden BirdWatch is the only nationwide survey of garden birds to run weekly throughout the year, providing important information on how birds use gardens, and how this use changes over time. Currently, some 16,500 people take part in the project. The BTO/CJ Garden BirdWatch is funded by participants’ contributions and supported by CJ WildBird Foods Ltd and is the largest year round survey of garden birds anywhere in the world. For more information see www.bto.org/gbw
3. CJ WildBird Foods is Europe’s leading supplier of bird food and bird feeding products. CJ WildBird Foods has been responsible for a number of significant developments within the bird food and feeding industry, including the introduction of black sunflower seeds to the UK as a major new bird food and the development of specialist seed mixes for use in tubular feeders. The company has also been supporting research into the changing fortunes of garden bird populations, most notably through the BTO/CJ Garden BirdWatch.
4. Images of Mistle and Song Thrushes are freely available for use in association with this press release. Please contact to request an electronic version. Please quote reference number 2007/12/87
5. Bird Information. For lots of facts and figures about garden birds go to www.bto.org/birdfacts
6. The BTO has an ISDN line available for radio interviews.

For further information please contact:

Paul Stancliffe (Press Officer) on 01842 750050 or e-mail: (during office hours)
or mobile 07845 900559 (anytime)

Mike Toms on 01842 750050 or e-mail: (during office hours)