Cedar Waxwing
After quite a bit of traveling lately it feels good to sit on the porch in the morning with a cup of coffee on the table and spend some time behind the camera. We had some really warm days in February already but this was the first weekend that felt really like spring, with lots of sunshine and very warm temperatures. During the last couple of weeks, after our return from Oregon, several migrating birds have arrived, some earlier than usually. Among them are Eastern Phoebes, Ruby-crowned Kinglets, Chipping Sparrows, Eastern Bluebirds, and this morning the first House Wren inspected our nest boxes. At the other hand, a couple species are still present that normally leave our woods and move further north as soon the temperatures are above freezing, like Dark-eyed Juncos and Purple Finches. A trend we have seen already during the last three years and that makes me wonder if we experience a change in migrating behavior due to much warmer winters. I make notes every spring since 2007 beside recording first sightings of the season with the camera.
The most colorful bird I had in front of the lens today was this Cedar Waxwing. They are supposed to be here all year long but we don’t see them very often during the cold season. Their appetite for cedar berries during the winter gave them obviously their name. Since we have red cedars here on the bluffs above the Little Maquoketa Valley, the waxwing’s appearance is not really a surprise.