Bohemian waxwing

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Onglets

Description

Distinguishing features

This species is no longer present at the Biodôme.

The bohemian waxwing is a fairly stocky, medium-sized bird (size of a starling), with a crested head. It has soft grey, brown-speckled plumage that is silky soft, hence its scientific name, Bombycilla, referring to silkworms, or bombyx. The bill, eyes and legs are black. The black mask across its eyes extends toward the back of its head. It also has a small black patch under its bill. The wings are greyish brown, marked with black, yellow, white and red at the tips. The rump and tail are grey, becoming blackish near the end, with yellow trim. The underside of the tail is red-brown. The two sexes are similar, although the female does not have a crest, her mask ends right behind the eye and she does not have a black throat patch. Juveniles are similar to females, but duller. The secondary feathers have bright-red flattened tips that look like wax (hence the name waxwing).

Reproduction

Bohemian waxwings nest singly or in small colonies. They are considered a colonial nesting bird because sometimes two or more couples are seen nesting close to one another (a few metres apart). During the courtship ritual, the male offers the female a berry or insect. She gives it back and they pass it back and forth without ever swallowing it.

The Bohemian waxwing builds its cup-shaped nest on a horizontal tree branch, far from the trunk (usually a solitary conifer), from 1.5 to 15 m off the ground. The nest is made of twigs, grass and moss, lined with lichen, down and hair.

The female lays four to six eggs wich she incubates on her own for about fifteen days. During this time the male feeds her. The young stay in the nest for the first 12 to 15 days. They eat insects and berries regurgitated by the parents. Bohemian waxwings breed in early summer (June or July) rather than spring to take advantage of the coming abundance of fruit.

Diet

During the breeding period, these birds eat insects, catching them in flight. They also eat spiders. The rest of the year, they eat fruit (cherries, blackberries, raspberries, apples, grapes, highbush cranberries, crabapple, etc.) and berries (especially juniper and mountain-ash). This means that they are highly dependent on the plants in their habitat and on weather conditions that affect fruit production. They also eat flower petals and buds.

Bohemian waxwings frequent birdfeeders in winter. Some bird lovers even collect and freeze large quantities of mountain ash berries to feed these birds in winter.

Bohemian waxwings do not obtain water from the fruit they eat, but instead have to drink directly from a pond, stream, fountain or birdbath.

During the mating period, the Bohemian waxwing only feeds on insects and spiders.

Predators

Their main enemies are merlins, sharp-shinned hawks, Cooper's hawks and rough-legged hawk. Squirrels eat their eggs. In addition, they are sometimes caught by cats, dogs, martens, lynx, snakes and various raptors. These opportunistic predators will attack bohemian waxwings if given a chance. This species often has conflicts with the American robin during migration.

Habitat

Bohemian waxwings are found in large boreal forests (specially in the taïga) in North America, Europe and Asia. It is mainly an occasional winter visitor in southern quebec, present from late October to late April. They spend the breeding period in western North America from Alaska to southern British Columbia. Some individuals nest in Quebec.

In winter, they migrate as far south as Colorado and as far east as northern New York State. They can even be spotted in Gatineau, Montréal, Quebec City and even the Lower St. Lawrence, where they can be seen in large flocks. Their migration patterns are irregular, changing from year to year. These birds prefer open coniferous or mixed (deciduous and coniferous) forests, burned areas and peat bogs. Highly nomadic and social, the Bohemian waxwing appears to be totally free of aggression, toward its own species and other bird species. In winter, they are not afraid of humans, and venture into parks and around homes. They are regular visitors to bird feeders.

Ecology, behaviour

A bohemian waxwing acts like a flycatcher to catch insects. It perches on a dead branch, watching for passing insects. If one gets too close, it snaps it up with a short, quick flight, and then returns to its perch to await the next victim.

It has a rather limited repertoire of songs – a continuous twittering and chatter that has earned it the name jaseur (the twitter) in French.

These birds eat large quantities of fruit, sometimes getting inebriated on them. This is because some berries that remain too long on trees end up fermenting, giving their flesh a high alcohol content.

Families often stay together until late fall. In winter, groups of hundreds of individuals form. These birds are very social and often share fruit, passing it from one bill to the other, like a gift. They often perform acrobatic contortions to reach fruit and berries.

French name

Jaseur boréal

Scientific name

Bombycilla garrulus

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Birds

Order

Passeriformes

Family

Bombycillidae

Size

Lenght: from 19 to 22 cm Wingspan: from 33 to 35 cm

Weight

From 40 to 69 g 56 g in average

Life span

13 years

Status

Least concern (IUCN, 2018)

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