northeast-flora-and-fauna

Last March I spotted this American Robin foraging among goblin balls. I have to confess that prior to writing this I've never referred to American Sweetgum seed balls as "goblin balls", though the sharp spikes on sweetgum seed balls do seem like the sort of things that mischievous goblins might put out to annoy/vex us. And this article on sweetgums suggests this is a valid term for them (but rest assured that arborists are convinced that goblins are not involved in the production or distribution of these things). Though sweetgum isn't the favorite wood of woodworkers, these seed balls are probably the main reason this tree isn't terribly popular in yards. For those who like to walk barefoot, these seed balls constitute a minefield of pain [1]. Although our robins are unlikely to eat the seeds in these seed balls [2], some of our birds will eat them. These mostly seem to be stouter-billed birds like sparrows, cardinals, and finches, with American Goldfinch bein...