Cedar Waxwing
Bombycilla cedrorum

The cedar waxwing is a fruit-loving bird whose wings have a wax-red tip.

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Closeup up a cedar waxwing picking a berry off a branch.
Waxwings are fairly easy to identify by the bright yellow tips of their tails and their social nature as they plow through woodlands as a flock, looking for a meal. (Photo by Will Parson/Chesapeake Bay Program)

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Appearance

Cedar waxwings have a silky body that blends from beige to gray to light yellow. They have a black mask on their face. The tips of their wing feathers are wax-red and the tips of their tail feathers are lemon-yellow.

Feeding

Cedar waxwings are a social bird that typically forage in flocks. They will land on a tree or shrub and pluck berries from the branch, or catch insects mid-air. Nearly 90% of their diet is fruit.

Flight

Cedar waxwings move through fields in flocks looking for food. They are very vocal during flight.

Voice

Cedar waxwings primarily make two calls: a high-pitched “Tseee! Tseee!” and a “sighing whistle” according to Cornell’s All About Birds site.

Reproduction and life cycle

Male and female cedar waxwings court by perching near one another on a branch, touching bills and passing food back and forth. They make their nests in late summer and sometimes near other groups of birds. Females lay 3-5 eggs and incubate them themselves, though females and males feed the young. Young leave the nest about 14-18 days after hatching.

Did you know?

  • Cedar waxwings spread invasive species such as oriental bittersweet and privet by eating their fruit and spreading the seeds.

  • Cedar waxwings can become intoxicated after eating fermented berries in winter.

  • The same organic pigment that gives cedar waxwing the wax-red tip on their secondary wing feathers gives red fruits their color.

Sources and additional information

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