Home»Feast of the Cedar Waxwings
Created 17-Feb-09
18 photos
We have a huge crabapple tree in our tiny back yard; it fills maybe 25% of the space there. Last year’s crop of crabapples has been on the limbs all winter and we’ve wondered why the birds haven’t raided the tree. Yesterday, the alarm must have sounded. A flock of Cedar waxwings, Bombycilla cedrorum, took over the Crabapple at about 9 a.m. The Waxwings swallowed the fruit whole and in a hurry, as if our crabapples, after hanging there all winter, wouldn’t be there tomorrow. The birds seemed hell bent on inhaling the whole tree. Waxwings have been known to get drunk on overripe fruit. These guys appeared mildly drunk when they first landed and turned our beautiful tree into a block party.
All of these photos were made from our second floor bathroom window. Some of the birds were only 7-8 feet from the tip of my 200mm lens. Our dog looked at me as if I'd lost my mind as I propped one tripod leg in the bathtub, another under the sink, another next to the toilet. Anything for an image....
Run the slide show for the best view.
© Dan MacDonald Photography