The Accidental Visitor

For all bird and nature lovers in youtubia, especially Messabout1 and HeidiSaid!

A young Cedar Waxwing flew into one of the upper windows on my house this morning and fell onto the deck. Of course this sound immediately caught the attention of every dozy feline in the house! I put the stunned bird into a closed box for about 20 minutes to help with recovery from the shock. Then, after making sure the cats were all inside, I took it back outside where it eventually flew off to rejoin its mates.

Even as an immature, the Cedar Waxwing is easy to identify. A distinctive yellow band across the tips of the tail feathers, black and white mask, and brown crest set it apart from all the other birds in this part of the country. This is the first waxwing I've had a chance to see this close - it's a lovely little bird!

Sorry the quality isn't better on this vid.

Category:

Pets & Animals

Tags:

• cedar
• waxwing
• bird
• rescue
• window
• accident

[salar121]

i found the same bird and taken care of it but mine is just a really small baby



[woosteria]

@salar121 lovely! and how is it doing?

[atree3]

very lucky bird

I also like your woodpile

[woosteria]

Hi tree - Yes, it's a big woodpile in the summer:) We heat exclusively with wood, so it's not quite as big a pile at this point in the winter though!

As for the waxwing, yes it was lucky I got to it before the cats did. As it happens, same thing happened with a male cardinal just a few days ago. I held him and examined his precious beauty closely before he recovered and flitted away.

[seahue]

Awesome video! I especially liked how you showed off that yellow band...I didn't notice that on the ones I saw... I was too focued on their black and white masks! Such a beautiful bird! Wish they visited more...So happy you were able to rescue it:)

[woosteria]

Thank you for the nice compliment, and yes, I was very happy see a waxwing up close and personal, although it's too bad this one had to go through such hard knocks first!

Been watching your vids and have thoroughly enjoyed all that I've seen so far! It's obvious you appreciate nature, and have a good eye for the small natural wonders of this world. Keep up the good work - very nice vids! indeed :)

[woosteria]

Hi TOK - We don't have currawongs here, so I looked it up online. They look like good-sized birds. How in the world did it's head get through such a small hole? Or was it a baby? I've rescued quite a few birds around my house, mainly because they tend to fly into the window glass.

[woosteria]

Thanks! The first time I saw ever saw them was here in OH in early spring. After a thaw period, we had had a freeze which created a thin layer of ice to form on the tree branches & buds. Walking by a sugar maple, I noticed some movement up in it - a flock of waxwings had taken up temporary residence! They were so busy drinking the sugary water that dripped from the buds, that they were totally oblivious to me, and I was able to get really close! Such gorgeous birds. Truly a magical moment!

[redihpeach]

Thanks for helping him. I never seen a Cedar Waxwing in person only in books.

[woosteria]

yes it was!