Cedar Waxwing

Bombycilla cedrorum

For some reason, late summer always makes me think of waxwings. I know small numbers of them spend the winter, especially in the interior of the state, and many more arrive in spring to breed throughout our deciduous and mixed woodlands; but the thought persists. Maybe it’s because the first time I saw a waxwing in real life it was at the end of the summer. Maybe it’s just because the leaves are starting to brown and draw more attention to their branches. Either way, now is still a good time to see them feeding together in open woodlands, in fruiting trees, or orchards.

Except when they are nesting, Cedar Waxwings almost always forage in flocks. These birds are sociable during all seasons, and it is rare to see just one waxwing. You can spot them hovering briefly while plucking berries or taking insects from foliage. They also often fly out to catch insects in mid-air. Their favorite food is fruit. The Cedar Waxwing is one of the few North American birds that specializes in eating fruit, and they can survive on fruit alone for several months. Brown-headed Cowbirds that are raised in Cedar Waxwing nests typically don’t survive, in part because the cowbird chicks can’t develop on such a high-fruit diet. They’re also one of the few birds that let the seeds of fruits pass through them, rather than regurgitating them like most birds. Occasionally a line of waxwings perched on a branch will pass a berry back and forth, from bill to bill, until one of them swallows it. To attract waxwings to your yard, plant native trees and shrubs that bear small fruits, such as dogwood, serviceberry, cedar, juniper, hawthorn, and winterberry.

This species often comes to backyards if food is offered. Find out more about what this bird likes to eat and what feeder is best by using the Project FeederWatch Common Feeder Birds bird list.

Their breeding habitat is influenced by the availability of fruiting trees and shrubs, often most common in “edge” situations, like along forest edges, streamsides, overgrown fields, edges of swamps, or suburban yards. In winter, they may be in any wooded or semi-open area where berries are abundant.

Anyone who looks at a waxwing usually thinks how smooth it is! They really do seem smooth, in part because the body is uniformly colored and the individual feathers are difficult to make out. Their jaunty crests, black face masks, and yellow tail-tips make waxwings unmistakable birds. The “waxy” tips on their wing feathers are merely modifications of the feathers. Imagine the individual feather barbs becoming thicker and thicker, fusing, and becoming bright red. As a waxwing matures, it develops more of these tips, and their size and number are a sign of maturity. Birds with more red tips tend to breed together and breed more successfully, so more “wax” may be a sign of a bird with higher fitness.

Bohemian Waxwings (Bombycilla garrulus), are bigger and more colorful, and visit the Northwest only in winter from their breeding grounds in the boreal forest. They are more common on the east side of the Cascades, where flocks may be encountered in fruiting trees, many of them non-natives and often found in cities and towns.

Did You Know?  Cedar Waxwings with orange instead of yellow tail tips began appearing in the northeastern U.S. and southeastern Canada in the 1960s. The orange color is the result of a red pigment picked up from the berries of an introduced species of honeysuckle. If a waxwing eats enough of the berries while it is growing a tail feather, the tip of the feather will be orange.

-Samantha Zeiner, Administrative Coordinator FWRNWR