Waxwings travel to the UK from Scandinavia when food supplies run low further north. Some winters, only a handful make the journey, with perhaps a few hundred birds scattered across the country. In other years, conditions trigger a mass movement, and thousands arrive in what birdwatchers call an “irruption”. These are the winters people remember – when flocks appear seemingly overnight, filling trees with colour and sound.
Often, the first waxwings are spotted in late autumn, especially in northern and eastern parts of the UK. As winter progresses, birds filter south and west, settling wherever they find the right food. Unlike many of our winter birds, waxwings are surprisingly urban in their tastes. They have a particular fondness for the bright red and orange berries of ornamental trees, especially rowans, which means they can turn up in supermarket car parks, town centres and business parks as readily as nature reserves.
Watching a flock descend on a berry-laden tree is a joy. Birds shuffle along branches, passing berries between them, sometimes becoming so full they can barely fly. Their name comes from the glossy red tips on some of their wing feathers, which look like drops of sealing wax, adding another flourish to an already dazzling bird.
