Here are more additions to the diet of Bohemian Waxwings during their winter 2022-2023 visit to Colorado:
*Mike Britton reports them eating the cones of common juniper (Juniperus communis) at the Florissant Fossil Beds. This woody plant is native to our mountains and has a low-growing, prostrate form.
*Bill Killam who lives in northwest Denver says they mostly ate crabapple fruits in his yard but also consumed the fruits of his "Blue Velvet" honeysuckle. This is Lonicera korolkowii 'Floribunda', a cultivar developed at the famous Cheyenne Experiment Station just north of the Colorado border. It is native to the mountains of central Asia, Afghanistan and Pakistan. Despite being exotic, it's a good choice for our area, part of the Plant Select program and has a low water requirement once established.
*Heather Weber-Langvardt of Wild Birds Unlimited Store #023 in Colorado Springs reports them eating the fruits of serviceberry (Amelanchier sp.) and elderberry (Sambucus sp.). Colorado has a native species of serviceberry (two subspecies) and two species of native elderberries, one non-native elderberry.
The last edition of the column I write in "Colorado Birds" titled "The Hungry Bird" was about Bohemian Waxwings. At the time of composition, all the reports I had read only mentioned four items (crabapples, Rocky Mountain juniper cones, Russian-olives and common buckthorn fruits). Since asking for observations from COBIRDS readers, an additional seven items (the four above plus kinnikinnick berries, Siberian elm buds and rotten apples) should be on the CO list. Doug Ward provided a nice summary of what they eat in northern Idaho. An addendum for the Bohemian waxwing diet in Colorado might well be part of the next article.
Thank you to everyone who has contributed to our understanding of this bird's food habits during the current invasion.
Dave Leatherman
Fort Collins
No comments:
Post a Comment