Cedar Waxwing

The Cedar Waxwing is a silky, shiny collection of brown, gray, and lemon-yellow, accented with a subdued crest, black mask, and brilliant-red wax droplets on the wing feathers. In fall these birds gather by the hundreds to eat berries, filling the air with their high, thin, whistles. 

In summer you’re as likely to find them flitting about  over rivers in pursuit of flying insects, where they show o

Cedar Waxwings love fruit. 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 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.

The name "waxwing" comes from the waxy red secretions found on the tips  of the secondaries of some birds. The exact function of these tips is  not known, but they may help attract mates.

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 

Cedar Waxwings are often heard before  they’re seen, so learn their high-pitched call notes. Look for them low  in berry bushes, high in evergreens, or along rivers and over ponds. Be  sure to check big flocks of small birds: waxwings are similar to  starlings in size and shape, and often form big unruly flocks that grow,  shrink, divide, and rejoin like starling flocks.