A couple of weeks ago I got an e-mail from fellow blogger, Dizzy.... asking me if I knew what kind of a bird had a yellow stripe on the end of his tail... like it had been dipped it in a can of yellow paint.
I came up with possibly a green jay (he does live in Texas), or maybe a goldfinch that was molting... ran through all the warblers in my head... nope...
I don't know why I didn't think of the Cedar Waxwing. Dizzy came up with the answer before I did.
Kind of a grainy picture... these guys were quite a way off...
But... if you've got really good eyes, you can kind of see the yellow stripe. Especially the one farthest right with his back to the camera.
Cedar Waxwings often fly in groups... and they like berries and the such. A huge group flew over yesterday, stopping at the top of a big oak that is several hundred feet west of our motorhome. They stopped for a while... maybe eating the juniper berries still on the trees? Or could the sap possibly be running and they're taking a sip?
I can count about 30 birds here, and this was just in one part of the tree. I heard a rumor that it's almost Spring... they could very well be migrating to their summer range.
There's another bird quite similar... the Bohemian Waxwing. It's about an inch bigger and slightly different color pattern as well as living in a different area. I've never seen one of those guys. Both species have red "waxy-like" tips on their secondary wing feathers, giving them their name.
The Cedar Waxwing lives all over the USA... they used to descend on our mulberry tree on our farm when the berries were ripe. When we live in Maine, I often see flocks of them high up in the treetops.
If we don't get back into "birding territory" soon, I swear, I'm gonna need retrained in identifying my little feathered friends.
Speaking of which... we didn't head to Livingston today... Bill is still working on the gate at our daughter's place and we think we'll be ready to hit the road tomorrow.
Good thing our plans are so flexible!
That's All For Today!
With all the trees we have here you think I'd see them more.
ReplyDeleteI have known Cedar Waxwings to seemingly become intoxicated after eating berries that had fermented. Plus, I love the little song they sing.
ReplyDeleteI am far from the bird expert that you are, but learning all the time. I used to know a lot more about them than I do now. Where the heck does all that information go that was in my brain?
ReplyDeleteI haven't seen a Cedar waxwing in a long long time, but maybe I haven't been looking. They're pretty!
ReplyDeleteI really like cedar waxwings. They're such sociable beings. When I hear their calls, I look and listen to find them.
ReplyDeleteNice Header of the Sandhills! I love the Waxwings. They're really beautiful.
ReplyDeleteMore interesting bird info, flexible plans are w great way to live and travel, much more relaxing. Enjoy Livingston.
ReplyDeleteHope you get those wheels rolling soon, ours will probably be rolling sooner than we thought!
ReplyDeleteThat is a tree full of Waxwings, for sure. We used to see them late in winter, stripping the last of the berries off of the yaupon. They also liked the mistletoe that was up in the oaks.
ReplyDeleteSafe travels!!
Hey, two days of blogging in a row ... she's back! I hope you get moving to a warmer spot soon.
ReplyDeleteWe have flocks of cedar waxwings at the farm every fall. They strip the mountain ash trees of all the berries and then move on.
ReplyDeleteI was feeling really psyched yesterday when I spotted a cardinal in a bush as I was cruising around the campground. It felt good to see that pop of color among all the gray. Things are starting to green up here, but overall it's still pretty drab.