[486] BIRDS OF OREGON 



winter of 1931-31 the birds appeared in numbers, going far south into 

 California, according to published reports. We find we have specimens 

 and notes from the following counties: Baker, Benton, Deschutes, Grant, 

 Klamath, Lake, Malheur, Multnomah, Union, Wallowa, and Wasco. 

 Our own records have been published from Baker (Jewett 1909^, Wallowa 

 (Gabrielson i92_4a), and Multnomah (Jewett and Gabrielson 192.9) Coun- 

 ties. The species arrives in November (earliest date, November n, Kla- 

 math County) and remains until March (latest date, April 19, Mult- 

 nomah County). 



Bendire (1877), who first recorded the species from Oregon, found it 

 as a winter visitor to Camp Harney; Johnson (1880) recorded a pair from 

 Hillsboro in January 1876; Woodcock (1901), on various authorities, 

 listed it from Camp Harney between November 1875 an< ^ March 1876, 

 from Haines, January 10, 1897, from Salem as "a rare winter migrant," 

 and from Forest Grove in January 1876; and Raker (1918) saw waxwings 

 in Portland in February 1917. 



The Bohemian Waxwings are among the most beautiful of all Oregon 

 birds. Their plumage has a silky texture that is lacking in many birds, 

 and the soft pastel shades of gray and brown merging imperceptibly into 

 one another are beautifully contrasted with the brilliant yellow tips to 

 the tail feathers and the waxen ruby drops on the secondary wing feathers. 

 The birds fly in compact flocks, usually in silence or with faint notes that 

 do not attract attention. When in Portland they showed a decided 

 preference for the berries of such cultivated shrubs as Pyracantha and 

 Cotoneaster. As they sit on these dooryard shrubs, their conspicuous crests 

 and sveldt appearance cause wonderment among the householders as to 

 the native home of these strange outlanders. No bird is more stylish and 

 distinctive in appearance, and it is indeed a red-letter day when a flock 

 comes within the observation of a bird student. 



Cedar Waxwing: 



Bomby cilia cedrorum Vieillot 



DESCRIPTION. "Adults: Streak through eye velvety black; crest, head, and under 

 parts fawn color, fading to olive yellow on flanks; upper parts olive gray becoming 

 blackish on wing quills and tail; tail tipped with yellow and both wing and tail 

 sometimes tipped with red wax-like appendages. Young: similar, but duller, and 

 under parts strongly, upper parts lightly, streaked. Length: 6.50-7.50, wing 3.60- 

 3.90, tail 1.30-1.60." (Bailey) Nest: A bulky structure, built of twigs, weed stems, 

 grasses, and vegetable fibers, lined with leaves and rootlets, and placed in bushes 

 or small trees. Eggs: 3 to 5, bluish gray, spotted with brown or black. 



DISTRIBUTION. General: Breeds from central British Columbia, central Alberta, 

 central Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, and Cape Breton Island south to northern 

 California, New Mexico, Kansas, northern Arkansas, and North Carolina. Winters 

 south to Central America. In Oregon: Permanent resident and breeding species 

 throughout State. Frequents stream bottoms and open woodlands. 



