CEDAR WAXWING 89 



in flocks on buds or fruit, it is able to do much by massed attack on some destruc- 

 tive insect. Its record in this respect is excellent. 



H. H. Kopman (1915) s^Deaks of the cedar waxwing's feeding in 

 Louisiana : "At New Orleans, little is seen of it until about Feb. 1, when 

 it arrives to feed on the fruit of hackberry and Japan privet, and 

 the flowers of the ehn. It later feeds on the blossoms of the pecan, 

 and finally on the fruit of the mulberry." 



The voracious appetite of the cedarbirds has attracted many com- 

 ments. Forbush (1911) exclaims : "Such gourmandizers as they were ! 

 They ate until they could eat no more, only to sit about on the branches 

 or play with one another awhile, and then eat again." And Audubon 

 (1842) remarks: 



The appetite of the Cedar-bird is of so extraordinary a nature as to prompt it 

 to devour every fruit or berry that comes in its way. In tiiis manner they gorge 

 themselves to such excess as sometimes to be unable to fly, and suffer themselves 

 to be taken by the hand. Indeed I have seen some vphich, although wounded and 

 confined in a cage, have eaten of apples until suffocation deprived them of life in 

 the course of a few days. When opened afterwards, they were found to be gorged 

 to the mouth. 



Charles H. Kogers (1907) mentions cedarbirds drinking the sap 

 flowing from broken maple trees, and Prof. Maurice Brooks, writing 

 to Mr. Bent, says: "We were in the spruce belt on Gaudineer Knob, 

 Randolph County, W. Va., searching for red crossbills. The spruces 

 were in bloom, the carpels hanging with tiny drops of a sweetish 

 gum. This is a favorite food of the crossbills, and we saw, on one 

 occasion, a large flock of cedar waxwings feeding steadily on these 

 flower carpels. It was not a case of eating insects in the flowers ; with 

 glasses we watched the birds strip off and swallow the flower parts 

 themselves." 



There are several records of cedarbirds eating the petals of apple 

 blossoms. William Brewster (1937) speaks of the birds thus, as he 

 watched them on May 14, 1905 : 



The apple trees at the Farm were in full bloom to-day. On one of them we 

 found a party of 5 Cedar Birds * * * all of which were busily engaged in 

 picking off and devouring the petals of the blossoms. I watched them at close 

 range (about 20 feet) for fully 15 minutes. During this time each bird must 

 have eaten a dozen or more petals. These were sometimes swallowed whole (not 

 without some difliculty), sometimes torn into halves before being swallowed. As 

 the birds remained nearly motionless the whole time, simply bending down 

 and taking the petals within easy reach without exercising any apparent choice, 

 I was convinced that they were eating only the petals and not selecting those 

 that may have had insects on them. This habit of the Cedar Bird (if it be 

 really a habit) is quite new to me. 



Among others, Ben. J. Blincoe (1923) has also observed this habit 



repeatedly, and Ralph Hoffmann speaks of it in his manuscript notes. 



Cedar waxwings are adroit flycatchers. We frequently see them, 



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