Jupiter wrote:
: There's been a bit of discussion lately about sweet cherries so a word
: of warning. We have a heavily cropping mature sweet cherry in our
: garden and the cherries are delicious - the ones left for us, that is!
: They are exceedingly attractive to birds and squirrels and they will
: literally gorge on them. Wood Pigeons like them and Blackbirds are
: quite destructive, often slashing into cherries and leaving them
: damaged rather than taking the whole fruit. We even have a pair of
: Carrion Crows regularly feeding on them. When they come all other
: birds leave the garden, although the pigeons will try to stand up to
: them for so long. Today a flock of Starlings, 50 at least, descended
: on the tree, but left in a hurry when an indignant Lord Crow dropped
: vertically into the top, staying to eat a couple of cherries himself.
: If anyone is hoping for a viable crop, rather than the occasional
: treat, it will almost certainly be necessary to protect the ripe
: cherries. Pigeons even take them green.

And if you think you have it sorted by netting the trees (mine are on
dwarfing root stock, but it's still a job and a half), then when they
ripen the wasps get in and get them once they are near ripe.