Waxwings at long last
With the number of Waxwing reports around the country seemingly multiplying day on day I was still missing them everywhere up to last week. Four flew past me on the Humber bank, must have been looking the otehr way, six were in Tesco’s car aprk when I was in the forest and another one there when I was who knows where but my multiple Tesco visits and scrutiny of all the Barton Rowans and Guelder Rose berries had yielded nowt. While surveying last week on. abeautiful sunny, yes sunny and cold day, I was chatting to a colleague on the phone bemoaning our joint lack of luck with the seemingly very mobile flocks that were transiting Lincolnshire. Ten minutes later two Starlings flew past me; Waxwings being of that sort of jizz you give passing Starlings a second look but these two were certainly as supposed then seconds later another arrived from the same direction but at last it was a Waxwing but it flew past me and onward then as mind over matter took hold it landed in a berry laden hedge on the roadside. A rapid walk and I was in very small record shot distance of it perched particularly unobtrusively in a key laden ash tree. Why was it not feasting on the berries? But no it just sat there high up and beyond too many fences and hedges to allow closer approach. Then eventually it came down but it was hidden while feeding and back up in another tall tree. Images were still very much on the record shot side of quality and at this point all the thrushes were flushed and I lost it. Time to leave a little disappointed. But as so rarely happens driving back up the road bang on top of a small elder was the Waxwing and what a bird it was a beautiful adult male in all its glory and in full sun and amazingly it sat there for 20 minutes allowing me to get out of the car and take about 800 images! Odd branches could not be pruned but it was a very nice result.
One of our neighbour’s has a beautiful sorbus sunshine tree in the front garden but with some sort of blindness I had walked past it many times and assumed it had no berries this year but a check this week revealed that it was in fact covered in berries! Regular scrutiny followed then on Wednesday while out enjoying Pineapple upside down and custard a WhatsApp from Mark on Westfield Road to the effect that five Waxwings had just flown over his garden! Should we go back as it was nice and sunny? no have a walk on the Wolds with Brambling and Tree Sparrows in the sunflower crop but precious little else in the arable desert. By the time we get home, via Tesco’s car park with no Waxwings its getting very dull but a quick naked eye scan on the local TV aerials reveals four birds !!!! Waxwings from the garden - camera out even at 6400 ISO and get down tot eh sorbus tree. It’s school leaving time, another disaster but eventually they come down for a few smash and grab raids on the beautiful yellow berries. Late afternoon they start calling and fly off NW but I am sure they will be back and yes Thursday they are back with a newcomer, five in total, but its duller than dull and wet so abandon the camera. Below shots from the very dull Wednesday at very slow shutter speeds. A mix of adults and young birds of the year.
After yet another wet and dull day on Thursday the forecast for Friday was sunny spells. Typically with bright low sun the Waxwings were absent up to 10:30 when I made a cup of tea and seven flew in calling; ditching the tea I was still too slow as they spooked and flew off south! About half an hour later they were back but a bank of fog kept blotting out the sun for long spells and various lorries and a procession of cars kept their visits to the berries to a very short stint. They were often spooked by something else as well and at one point settled on the aerial next to mine before they all flew off east late morning. I was actually amazed to see them all volley from the aerial at one point and some of them caught flying insects even with the temperature at 6C. In the brief spells of brightness at least managed a few flight shots.
The early morning lookalikes on the TV aerial
Incoming and then there were seven, five yesterday and four the previous day
Another week and the local gang built up to nine on the 13th in really dismal light then nothing until today when three came in a few times but mainly spent their time high up in the tree tops and on the aerials calling almost constantly today unlike earlier in their stay. Nothing startling photo wise but still a fair few berries left so hopefully a decent chance will materialise. Then five on a day with some brief sunny spells and my shot of the winter so far below.
