Five facts about our Christmas nature

RSPB Scotland’s Allie McGregor shares five facts about some of the nature we associate with Christmas.

Five facts about our Christmas nature

Under the mistletoe

Mistletoe is an evergreen plant which produces bright white berries over winter. Mistletoe is not often seen in the wild in Scotland! The links between mistletoe and finding romance goes all the way back to Norse mythology when it was symbolic of love and friendship.

Robin red breast

Robins are very well loved in the UK and many of us will spot them in our gardens or other local nature spaces this winter. Robins are actually quite territorial all year round and are wiling to get pretty vicious while defending their space!

In Victorian times, British postmen wore red-breasted coats which resembled the robin red-breast, earning them the nick-name Robins. As the postmen were delivering Christmas cards, the connection with robins and Christmas began.

The holly and the ivy

Holly berries only grow on female plants and are a great source of winter food for birds such as the mistle thrush. In Autumn ivy flowers with small yellowy-green clusters and then over winter these flowers develop into dark berries. 

The traditional Christmas carol ‘The Holly and the Ivy’ dates centuries back.

Six geese a-laying, seven swans a-swimming

The 12 days of Christmas is responsible for introducing much of our traditional wildlife imagery for the season. Numbers of geese and swan grow in Scotland over winter as arrivals come from Iceland, Greenland, Scandinavia and other places.

You might have spotted the recognisable v-formation of a skein flying overhead in the past few months as these visitors arrived. This formation allows every bird to have a good viewpoint and also helps them save energy as the geese behind benefit from a reduction in drag!

Pine trees

Christmas trees tend to be either firs, pines or spruces. Of these, the UK’s only native species is Scots pine. Scots pine is mostly found in Caledonian Forest in our Scottish Highlands. Scots pine provides shelter and food for many wonderful species.