I mentioned in an earlier article, the Scandinavian Thrushes such as Redwings and Fieldfares that come over here in the Winter to take advantage of our berries when the crop in their homeland fails.

Every so often another exotic visitor arrives every few years or so in invasions as they are known, when huge numbers arrive. These birds are Waxwings, and this year are here in droves. They are certainly attractive birds of a subtle pinkish colour with a black throat and eye patch and a large head crest. There are beautiful red ,yellow and white feather edges on the on the wings and tail. The strangest of these are some red waxy projections on the secondary wing feathers – which give the bird its name in fact, and are more prominent in the older males especially.

They nest in the far northern Pine and Birch forests with a berry rich shrub layer.

Other attractive features is their habit of often moving around in large flocks, and in many cases are extremely tame – allowing humans to approach to within a few yards. Look for a bunch of photographers and there may be zooming in on a flock !

Hawthorn berries are the usual native food but the large plantings of Cotoneaster,Rowans and other ornamental berry bearing shrub on supermarket car parks has proved a big attraction to these birds. Privet berries, Rose Hips Apples,and Viburnum are taken later as the favoured crops dwindle and so having these plants in your garden may surprise you with a pleasant colourful surprise as the flocks whirl around looking for new berries on which to feed. Be quick though as they can descend on a bush and strip it in minutes before they are off again in search of new sites.