A profusion of purple

Usually the number of Purple Finches on my weekly count runs between 1 and 4, but they’ve increasing steadily over the past 3 weeks. Three weeks ago there were 6, the next week – 8, and last week – 11. They love to feast on the bright berries of Buckbrush – which is also known by the more descriptive name Coralberry. The pinkish-red color of the berries perfectly matches the bright color of the male finches. Coralberry is a low-growing native shrub that does well in the shade of mature trees. I’ve planted it beneath a giant old Hackberry tree growing outside my back door. The Hackberries produced very little fruit this year but the Coralberry is loaded with plump fruit. I took this photo a while back after a freezing rain encapsulated the fruit.