New visitors!!

We had new visitors to our bird bath today -- cedar waxwings!!  What a wonderful surprise!!  Here is what one looks like: 


© Ben Thomas/GBBC

http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/cedar_waxwing/lifehistory
 

I was filling one of the bird feeders with the new blend of bird seeds. I noticed a flock of birds in the top of the maple tree.  I could not tell what they were, only that they were NOT the many goldfinches we have had the last few weeks or so.  They looked a little like female cardinals from that distance, but I knew that many females would not all be together.  After I filled the feeder, I stepped back up on the front porch and stood very still for a while and waited.  After a few minutes, a couple of the birds flew down to the bird bath.  The moment I saw them I thought -- cedar waxwings!!  I waited for a few minutes to enjoy watching them.  Finally, they flew back up to the tree and I went inside to quickly check my bird book.  Sure enough, they were cedar waxwings!!  I was so excited!!  I have never seen them in real life before -- a first for me!!  I stood inside looking out the front door with my binoculars and I could even see the red tips of their wings and the yellow tips of their tails.  They are absolutely beautiful!!

I took a few photographs but could not zoom in close enough so you cannot really tell any detail.  I will not bore you with them.   But, for a while there was quite the activity with several downy woodpeckers, dozens (and I do mean dozens) of goldfinches, a nuthatch, several cardinals, several purple finches, an unknown blackbird, the cedar waxwings, a couple of chickadees, and a couple of titmice.  After a while, the rain set in and most of the birds found other places to go.  The goldfinches stayed around for a while, as did the cardinals.  Even though the weather turned lousy, the birding was great!!