The Many Moods of a Cedar Waxwing

I admit it... I am obsessed with Cedar Waxwings. Neighbor Carla and I went boating again this morning in hopes of seeing my favorite birds. And, boy were we successful!

There were at least a dozen waxwings flying around the north side of the pond. Unfortunately, I couldn't get any good in-flight photos, so I had to settle for capturing them when they landed on the tamarack (larch) branches.

Check out the red, waxy tip of the wing feather!
WOWEE!
This is the first time I have seen it, much less photographed it!

I was psyched to photograph the red, waxy tips of the wing feathers on a couple of birds. This is where the name "waxwing" comes from!  The tips may to help the bird attract a suitable mate! Check out this information and more on All About Birds.org. Fascinating birds;-)

There were storm clouds building up as we sat in our favorite viewing spot, and the sky was darkening which made for more difficult photography. I had my 400mm lens with a 1.4x teleconverter attached to it. I only use this lens in bright, sunshiny weather, and had hoped that the clouds would hold off long enough for me to get some great shots. But, this was not to be. However, I did the best I could under the circumstances.

The birds were very adept at swooping hither and yon to capture insects. In fact, Carla and I were oohing and ahhhing at their acrobatics! 

After all that crazy flying, the birds would perch on the tamarack trees to preen their feathers.

We snapped so many photos as they performed their morning routines!

The raising of their crests also yielded laughter and comments on their almost Groucho Marx appearance.

These birds bring us so much joy, and we can't wait to get out there again for another photo shoot soon! That is, if Carla can handle sitting in one spot on the pond for an hour or more, again;-) She is a great sport...