Guide

Look closerPlants

Sumac fruit cones: red winter food for birds

September to February

Staghorn and smooth sumac grow upright cones of fuzzy red fruit that ripen in September and October and cling to the branches through winter. Birds tend to pass the sour, low-fat fruit over while better fruit lasts, then lean on it in deep winter when other food runs out.

Why this time of year

Sumac fruit cones stay on the branches from fall through winter, standing out at the tips of the shrubs. Birds mostly pass them over while other fruit lasts and turn to them in deep winter, so how much fruit is left tells you where the season is.

How to notice it

  1. Look for upright, cone-shaped clusters of small fuzzy red fruit at the tips of shrubby branches along roadsides, old fields, and woodland edges.
  2. Check the twigs: thick and velvety means staghorn sumac, smooth and hairless means smooth sumac; both hold the same kind of fruit cone.
  3. Watch a cluster quietly for a few minutes; in fall birds often pass sumac by, but in deep winter wild turkeys and songbirds are more likely to stop and strip fruit.
  4. Revisit the same patch a few weeks later and compare how much fruit is left.

Try this with kids: Can you find a plant with fuzzy red cones sticking straight up at the ends of its branches? Watch quietly for a few minutes and see if a bird stops by for a snack.

a sumac cone is really a tight cluster of small fuzzy fruits, not a conifer cone

Sources

  • research.fs.usda.govUSDA FEIS: staghorn sumac fruit ripens by September and persists through winter; eaten by many gamebirds and songbirds, but a New York study ranked it lowest in preference of four species tested, and bobwhites failed to thrive on it alone.
  • plants.ces.ncsu.eduNC State Extension: pheasant, bobwhite and wild turkey eat staghorn sumac fruit; relished by songbirds; fruit persists for winter interest.
  • woodyplants.cals.cornell.eduCornell Woody Plants Database: red pyramidal fruit clusters persist all winter and attract many birds.
  • mdc.mo.govMissouri Department of Conservation: dozens of bird species eat smooth sumac fruit, which often persists through winter.
  • fs.usda.govUSDA FEIS smooth sumac: wild turkey, gray partridge and mourning dove feed on the fruits.
  • audubon.orgNational Audubon: sumac berries are sour and not very fatty, passed over when better fruit is available, and eaten mainly in deep winter when options are scarce.

Checked against these sources on September 28, 2026.

In the guide for September, October, November, December, January, February

Also worth noticing