Re: [cobirds] Historical perspective on Bohemians?

I thought folks might appreciate the observations of Charles Aiken as he noted in The Birds of El Paso County, 1914:

Bohemian Waxwing - 

"Winter visitor; irregular; not seen at all many winters.  

The first note we have of this species is January, 1872, when Aiken saw a flock in Barnes's Canyon, near Turkey Creek [near Aiken Canyon today], and a note that Carter killed on on Pike's Peak [note the old-style name of America's mountain] the fall of 1871.

"There are specimens in the Aiken collection taken on Cheyenne Mountain, January and February, 1880.  There were some around the winter of 1910-11, and they were in Colorado Springs, February 26, 1911.

"Aiken noted at Salt Lake City, Utah, in 1894, that in the late afternoon the Waxwings, which had been about neglected orchards near the town feeding on the apples still hanging to the trees, began to fly in flocks up the canyons toward the mountains, evidently going to their roosting places in the green timber."

Cedar Waxwing

"Noticed only two or three times in the earlier part of the winter [1872].  5 or 6 seen on Beaver Creek by Aiken, October 17, 1872.  This was just over the line into Fremont County.  Several were also seen by him just south of Colorado Springs, August 8, 1897."

In the 1991 Birds of Colorado by Robert Andrews and Robert Righter, they noted two summer records of Bohemian Waxwing:  August 5, 1917 in Denver County and July 13, 1924 at Lost Park (12,000 ft), in Park County.  They claim in their notes that the species generally does not mix with Cedar Waxwings, and state that movements of Cedar Waxwing do not appear to coincide with those of the Bohemian Waxwing.

My own questions/comments - 

1.  About Aiken's Salt Lake City note, I observed something extremely similar while watching the waxwings between North and Cheyenne Canyon in early January this year.    In late afternoon, as soon as the sun dipped behind the very near peaks (but still a few hours before sunset), the flock en masse took off and appeared to head to the location in South Cheyenne Canyon where they had been reported roosting in the early morning.

2.  About the Birds of Colorado note that the two species do not appear to mix and their movements do not appear to coincide - how sure are we about that?  This winter in El Paso County I have definitely seen much larger numbers and wider spread incidences of Cedar Waxwing, not just Bohemian, and I have often encountered groups of birds that contained both species.  This could be incidental, taking advantage of the same food sources, but both seem to be in increased numbers this winter - could some have also 'irrupted' concurrent with the Bohemians?  

Diana Beatty

El Paso County

On Wed, Feb 1, 2023 at 3:01 AM SeEttaM <seettam@gmail.com> wrote:

I suspect the 2013 Bohemian Waxwings Brandon noted he saw in Fremont County were likely in the flock I posted about on my blog that were fly catching aerial insects at now closed Holcim Wetlands. 

My only other sighting in southern Colorado was of few Bohemian Waxwings I remember seeing in Salida around 2015 but I didn't post them anywhere.

SeEtta Moss 

Canon City 

On Tue, Jan 31, 2023, 4:21 PM Brandon <flammowl17@gmail.com> wrote:

In Southern Colorado, the last eruption of Bohemian Waxwings was in February 2005, there were 3,000+ around Lathrop State Park, Huerfano County.  Between 2005 and 2022, I only saw Bohemian Waxwings in Colorado in 2013 in Fremont County, a small number.  

Colorado Christmas Bird Counts this winter, found some Bohemian Waxwings, though the big numbers were mostly found after the Christmas Bird Count season was over.  Since not all the results are in yet, I don't know how many counts found them, and how many.  

Though so far, six counts found them, with a total of 250 birds.  

Denver (urban) CBC - 1

Douglas County CBC - 37

Granby CBC - 60

Gunnison CBC - 30

Loveland CBC - 81

Weldona-Fort Morgan CBC - 41

 

Brandon Percival

Colorado CBC Regional Editor
Pueblo West, CO

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