Cedar Waxwings – Mother Nature’s Berry Recyclers

By Judy Ferris, Master Naturalist & Guest Blogger

Have you ever wondered where all of those Holly berries disappear to every winter?

Meet the Cedar Waxwing – Mother Nature’s berry re-cycler!

This elegant bird, with its lovely tufted head, white-rimmed mask, and yellow tipped-tail is one of the few bird species that eats fruit year round. In addition to Holly berries, the Cedar Waxwing gorges on Dogwood fruits, Service berries, Juniper berries, Cedar berries, and many other fruits. The other 10% of the bird’s diet, available only in summer, consists of protein-rich beetles and ants as well as large insects like crickets, grasshoppers, mayflies and dragonflies.

Cedar Waxwings breed as far north as the Hudson Bay in Canada. When winter cold really sets in, however, Waxwings become nomads. They form large flocks and travel great distances in all directions in search of berries and other fruit. Each year, southern Maryland has an influx of flocks of hungry Waxwings on the lookout for berries. These flocks may contain anywhere from 20 to 100 or more birds. They fly at speeds up to 40 miles per hour in perfect unison in tight formation as they search for the ideal berry extravaganza. Just imagine being a first-year Waxwing, traveling in one of these fast-moving, swirling flocks. Who is leading? How does the flock know when and where to turn in unison? It must be an exhilarating adventure for a youngster!

Once berries are spotted, the birds often land together in the top of a tall deciduous “surveillance” tree near their target. From there, they scope out their objective – often a Holly tree. Eventually, one brave Waxwing drops down into the Holly tree and the rest of the birds pile in behind one by one. The idea is to grab berries as quickly as possible, then retreat back to the surveillance tree. The berry tree is bombarded by birds flying back and forth until it is stripped clean of fruit.

This Waxwing feeding drama can go on for hours or weeks, depending on the number of birds and how many berries are available. Meanwhile, all those berries have to be processed. Instead of digesting and spitting out the seeds, the entire fruit goes right through the Waxwings, unedited, and comes out as seedy purple poops. The purple poops may anoint your house, your driveway, your sidewalk, your car, or anything else that happens to be beneath a surveillance tree.

Whew! All of that glutinous eating of whole berries requires plenty of water to wash things down and out. This nice, heated bird bath has become the oasis of choice for a large flock of Cedar Waxwings. When a Waxwing bombardment is in full swing, the perimeter of this watering hole is lined with birds. Click on the link below to see them in action.

The video appears to be ‘speeded up’. But this is actually the pace at which Cedar Waxwings live their lives.

You are unlikely to see a Cedar Waxwing just hanging around waiting for you to spot it. They are often high up in a leafless tree, requiring you to peer up into the sun to make an ID. Good luck with that! Your best bet is to use your ears. Waxwings have a very high-pitched squealing whistle. At this time of year when they are in a flock, their collective sound is hard to miss. Click on the link below to listen. Be sure to listen to the ‘Flock Calls’ as well as some of the others, then flip to ‘Overview’ to see beautiful pics and read more about these remarkable birds.

Cedar Waxwing calls … and more! – https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Cedar_Waxwing/sounds

Cedar Waxwings are perfectly designed to be berry eaters. They have a short bill but an unusually large mouth – ideal for grabbing berries. Their tongue has inward facing barbs to help pull food into their throat and swallow it whole. They travel in flocks that range far and wide in search of food. But Mother Nature overlooked one detail. One of the perils of being a full-time berry eater is that the berries are not always perfectly ripe. Sometimes they are absolutely rotten. Rotten berries contain alcohol. In addition, when temperatures get very cold in winter, sugars in fruit are consolidated and eventually produce alcohol as well. With so much alcohol on tap, Cedar Waxwings are bound to get drunk once in a while. Yes, occasionally the birds get tipsy – running in to one another, having trouble landing, going in the wrong direction, some are even unable to fly. At this point, they need a rest and a nice drink of fresh water.

Cedar Waxwings – Feeding on berries – 50 seconds. https://mdc.mo.gov/blogs/discover-nature-notes/intoxicated-wildlife-2

A word to the wise: It has recently been discovered that those pretty red Nandina berries on the shrubs that we have introduced into our landscapes are toxic to Cedar Waxwings. Why Cedar Waxwings? Nandina berries contain cyanide. To most birds, this is not a threat because they only eat a few berries at a time and are able to manage the toxicity. Waxwings however, gulp down as much fruit as possible in a single feeding bout. Once in a while, a Waxwing eats more cyanide-laced berries than it can handle and the results are fatal. What’s a homeowner to do? I replaced all of my fruit-bearing Nandinas with other plants. Try non-fruiting Nandinas. Nandina berries can also be removed before they ripen but that gets to be tedious. Nandinas with berries have been condemned as an invasive plant in parts of southeastern United States. They are probably best replaced with a native plant.

According to the folks at All About Birds, “With the spread of ornamental berry trees in landscaping, Cedar Waxwings are increasingly seen in towns and suburbs. In winter, Waxwings are most abundant around fruiting plants in open woodlands, parks, gardens, forest edges, and second growth forests.” This means that perhaps your neighborhood could become a Cedar Waxwing magnet!