About:
The **Cedar Waxwing** (*Bombycilla cedrorum*) is a delightful bird to spot. Here are some key details about it:
– **Appearance**: When you observe a Cedar Waxwing through binoculars, you’ll notice its silky, shiny plumage. It features a combination of brown, gray, and lemon-yellow colors. The bird has a subdued crest, a rakish black mask, and brilliant-red wax droplets on its wing feathers.
– **Behavior**: In fall, Cedar Waxwings gather in large flocks to feast on berries, creating a chorus of high, thin whistles. During summer, they display impressive aerial maneuvers while chasing flying insects over rivers.
– **Habitat**: Look for them low in berry bushes, high in evergreens, or along rivers and ponds. They often form unruly flocks similar to starlings.
– **Diet**: These birds specialize in eating fruit. To attract them to your yard, consider planting native trees and shrubs that bear small fruits like dogwood, serviceberry, cedar, juniper, hawthorn, and winterberry.
– **Wax-Like Wing Tips**: The name “waxwing” comes from the waxy red secretions found on the tips of their secondaries. While the exact function of these tips isn’t fully understood, they may play a role in attracting mates.
– **Fun Fact**: Cedar Waxwings with orange tail tips (instead of yellow) appeared due to a red pigment from introduced honeysuckle berries.
– **Digestive Trait**: Unlike many birds, Cedar Waxwings don’t separate out fruit seeds; they let them pass right through.
– **Nesting**: Building a nest takes a female Cedar Waxwing 5 to 6 days, involving over 2,500 trips. Sometimes they reuse materials from other birds’ nests.
– **Longevity**: The oldest recorded Cedar Waxwing lived at least 7 years and 1 month¹²³⁴.
Feel free to explore more about these fascinating birds! 🐦🌿