The upper canopy of our large honeylocust tree is a jumble of dead branches. Though unsightly for the purist, it serves as a soapbox for many of our resident birds.
Among the more regular preachers and songsters are black-billed magpies, northern flickers, American robins, blue jays and mourning doves. The dead limbs also provide a popular perching site for house finches and the occasional loner (e.g. Says phoebes). At times, flocks of cedar waxwings gather there but they are too polite to preach.
A healthy amount of neglect supports avian diversity and I am more than willing to comply. Nature, after all, does not like to be manicured.
