This common shrub can kill NC birds. How to know if one is near your home
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Nandina domestica, sometimes called heavenly bamboo, has berries that contain cyanide.
- Cedar waxwings often eat many berries in the winter and can die from the plant’s toxins.
- Experts suggest taking out the plants or removing their berries to help protect birds.
A common shrub has a “heavenly” name, but it poses deadly risks for North Carolina birds.
Nandina domestica, sometimes called heavenly bamboo, is a plant commonly used in landscaping and sold at garden stores. That means one of the bushes may already be outside your home, The News & Observer previously reported.
The plants produce red berries that appear in the fall and winter. Though the berries look inviting to hungry birds, they contain the harmful chemical cyanide.
“The berries are toxic to all birds — however eaten in smaller quantities the birds will be able to handle the toxicity and it may be a short reaction,” Barbara Driscoll, co-chair of the bird friendly habitat committee at the New Hope Bird Alliance, told The News & Observer in a Friday, Feb. 20 email. “For birds which eat a lot of the berries such as cedar waxwings, the toxins will overpower their system and they can die immediately at or near the location where they ingested the berries.”
Here’s what to know about identifying heavenly bamboo and recognizing its potential impacts on cedar waxwings, which have brown, gray and yellow feathers.
What does heavenly bamboo look like?
Heavenly bamboo is native to parts of Asia. But the invasive species has made its way to North Carolina and other parts of the Southeastern United States, according to the N.C. State Extension and the N.C. Botanical Garden.
So, how can you recognize the plant?
Here are some features to look out for, The N&O previously reported:
- Cane-like shoots that “grow straight up and unbranched from the plant’s crown”
- Round, red berries that grow in grape-like clusters during colder months
- Leaves that branch out to 1 to 2 feet long, sometimes appearing red
How does the plant impact birds?
The berries on heavenly bamboo plants pose potential dangers for livestock, pets and even humans. The fruits are especially attractive to birds, which search for food to survive the winter.
“In our locale, cedar waxwings — gorgeous birds that live here all year long — are one of those birds, and their eating habits are such that when they see a bush with lots of red berries or fruit, they descend as a flock and stuff themselves,” Carol Hamilton told The N&O in 2024, adding that the birds are “hardwired to eat them. To them, red plus berry equals yum!”
Hamilton is the president of the New Hope Bird Alliance, formerly called the New Hope Audubon Society. The organization — which has a presence in Chatham, Durham and Orange counties — has received reports of dead birds found near heavenly bamboo.
Most bird species only eat a couple of berries, so their bodies typically get rid of the toxins. But cedar waxwings will eat several berries from one plant, leading to the risk of death when they start munching on heavenly bamboo.
“Due to how widespread the plant is in its use as a landscape plant, there is no reasonable way to track exactly how many birds die from this plant each year,” Deanna Bigio, horticulture extension agent with N.C. Cooperative Extension — Wake County Center, told The N&O in a Monday, Feb. 23 email.
How to keep birds safe
To help protect birds from heavenly bamboo, experts suggest homeowners take out the plant and spray an herbicide.
“Most birds will only eat a berry or two, but if you’re worried it’s better to just get rid of it,” Bigio wrote. “Native plant alternatives include American beautyberry, buttonbush, native viburnums or winterberry.”
If you want to keep heavenly bamboo in your yard, a different step you can take is to “remove and discard the berries. This option means the birds can’t eat the berries and they also won’t spread the berries by excreting the seeds in other locations,” Driscoll said.
Kimberly Tutuska and Evan Moore’s reporting contributed to this story. Portions of this story were previously published in The News & Observer.
This story was originally published February 23, 2026 at 4:18 PM with the headline "This common shrub can kill NC birds. How to know if one is near your home."
