Now that many leaves have dropped, we can see that the golden husks on the Asian Bittersweet vines (Celastrus orbiculatus) are opening and their glossy red berries are ready for the birds to eat. It’s a tragic collaboration.
The birds spread this tree-assassin’s seeds so profusely that all known countermeasures to eradicate or even to get ahead of the invader’s propagation have been failures. The vines continue to climb and wrap themselves around their sylvan victims and squeeze them to death like militarized pythons.
It’s a reminder that the impulsive pursuit of beauty can be disastrous. These constrictors were introduced here in the 19th Century to bring spectacular colors to gray winter landscapes. They create gray spring and summer trees.
Maine has given up on trying to eradicate Asian Bittersweet, but it has listed it as an invasive species that may not be sold or distributed here. There is a native version, aptly named American Bittersweet (Celastrus scandens), that is environmentally innocuous. But, that’s another story. (Image taken in Brooklin, Maine, on November 1, 2021.)