Date: 6/10/25 1:43 pm From: Dominik Mosur via groups.io <dominikmosur...> Subject: Re: [CALBIRDS] Cedar Waxwing question
Hi Rusty,
Per "birds of the world" account of Cedar Waxwing courtship hopping has
been noted as early as April in migrant flocks and includes passing of food
and sometimes of inedible items.
Also, while cedar waxwings are late migrants and the core of their breeding
range barely skirts the NW and NE corners of California they have been
noted breeding on a number of occasions much further from there than Sierra
Valley. Apparently they nested in Marin County in recent years, appear as
confirmed in the Napa County Atlas, and if my memory serves me once were
noted nesting in Coastal Orange County. So if you have the opportunity ,
this is an observation worth following up on.
Dominik Mosur
San Francisco
On Tue, Jun 10, 2025 at 1:31 PM rfs_berkeley via groups.io <rscalf=
<sonic.net...> wrote:
> On June 7 I saw a Cedar Waxwing just outside of Sierraville, CA. Sierra
> County. This seemed a bit surprising till I consulted eBird and see that
> Waxwings have been recorded in several places in the Sierra Valley region
> around this time. I know they are late migrants.
>
> June 8 I witnessed what looked like courtship feeding at basically the
> same location; an adult in classic wing-flapping begging posture being fed
> by another adult. This seems rather far south for breeding.
>
> My question: Do Cedar Waxwings engage in courtship behaviors on migration?
>
> As there the Central Sierra listserv no longer exists (and eBird cannot be
> searched for breeding codes) I'll ask the question to this larger audience.
>
> Thanks for reading.
>
> Rusty Scalf
> Berkeley, CA
>
>
>
>
>
