#692 Cedar Waxwing #692
by William Lum
Title
#692 Cedar Waxwing #692
Artist
William Lum
Medium
Painting - Watercolor
Description
I saw this Cedar Waxwing (Bombycilla cedrorum) in my backyard in Bogart, Georgia. The name "waxwing" comes from the waxy red secretions found on the tips of the secondaries of some birds. You can’t see the area of red wax from this frontal view. The exact function of these tips is not known, but they may help attract mates. The Cedar Waxwing is one of the few North American birds that specializes in eating fruit. It can survive on fruit alone for several months. In the northern part of their range, the cedar berry is a large part of their diet.
Cedar Waxwings with orange instead of yellow tail tips began appearing in the northeastern U.S. and southeastern Canada in the 1960s. The orange color is the result of a red pigment picked up from the berries of an introduced species of honeysuckle. If a waxwing eats enough of the berries while it is growing a tail feather, the tip of the feather will be orange.
This 15” X 11” watercolor was done on Arches, 140 lb., cold press paper.
Uploaded
March 31st, 2023
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