Cedar Waxwing

Day 251: "That's a Cedar Waxwing!" I said, surprised to see the bird (Bombycilla cedrorum) on the shepherd's-hook close to the window rather than in the cover of a tree, and somewhat puzzled at observing it at this time of the year. The Sitka Mountain-ash tree berries are green and hard, without flowers or ripe fruit to entice the species. Admittedly, that's not an exclusive diet, and upon checking, I found that they also eat serviceberries, but even those are rather scarce in the immediate vicinity. This bird may have been dining on insects in lieu of fruit. Waxwings are known to catch mayflies in flight as well as other bugs. That said, they generally come here in spring and fall, and are absent during the summer. I think the weather may have us all confused.