BOHEMIAN WAXWINGS AGAIN.

    Bohemian waxwings are a very common winter bird in this area. (Central Alberta). They appear about the end of November to mid December. They travel in rather large flocks so are very noticeable. The rest of the year they spend in the boreal forest.

    Waxwings are very attractive with the bright red and yellow markings. You can get very close to them when they are feeding on mountain ash berries. When they are resting in the daytime they find a huge tree where as many of them as possible jockey for spaces. They groom and enjoy the sun.

    Last week I wrote about how the waxwings are pursued by merlins. This week I observed the action again. There were many waxwings in the tree in my front yard as they were feeding in my neighbor's mountain ash. I got a few photos and as I was looking for another photo the flock exploded and left. As waxwings do they formed a dense ball and rose . Then I noticed a different bird. You almost think it's a waxwing that didn't here go. But it was the merlin. Again I didn't see him make a kill but I haven't had waxwings all week.

BOHEMIAN WAXWINGS

     Bohemian waxwings give us some fantastic shows in the winter. They are beautiful birds with some bright red and yellow highlights.

     Bohemian waxwings tend to hang out in rather large flocks. They start out smaller in early winter and gradually grow to be huge flocks which are very noticeable. It's amazing to see a large flock of birds take off all at the same instant. What's to communication they have that tells them to begin flight as if they are one bird?

     Flocks become larger as they feast on Mountain ash berries. The snow under roosting trees gets covered with the remains of the red mountain ash berries. And then they have the nerve to poop on cars.

     For me the best part of bohemian waxwings is when they are pursued by a predator. The predator in this area is the merlin. The merlin's method of predation is to get under a flock. The flock rises to get away from the merlin. Sooner or later a weak bird will drop for the flock. The merlin is on the bird like lightening.

     Today a large flock was in my district. And yes the merlin was here too. I saw the merlin chase the flock but I didn't see him make a kill.

     Are you watching the beautiful bohemian waxwings?

Another Sneaky Merlin Story

       We have a foot bridge which crosses the Red Deer River at the River Bend Golf Course. There are two large cement girders which support the bridge. The bridge is about 150 meters long.

       In the summer there are hundreds of cliff swallow nests on the girders. The birds find it easy to attach their nests to the cement girder. Since the bridge obviously crosses the river there is a tremendous insect population. This makes it ideal habitat for the swallows. There is also a bank swallow colony on the river bank at one end of the bridge. So in July there are hundreds of birds around this bridge.

       Now I get to the merlin. I found a merlin sitting on the bridge railing one evening. I also noticed that the swallows where swarming overhead and making an awful racket. One hunting tactic that merlins use is to get under a flock of birds . The birds try to fly up and away from the merlin. All the merlin is waiting for is for one bird to drop out of the flock and then the merlin  dives and catches the bird. Birds that are old , sick or young will become exhausted and drop down to find a perch. This merlin didn't bother to fly and keep the birds rising. He just sat on the bridge rail waiting for a meal to drop out of the sky for him. Very smart birds!

Opportunistic Merlin Hunters

       Merlins are extremely interesting to watch as they quite often show you something new. Merlins  hunt other birds for their food. Their prey is taken during flight. They have a variety of attacks, but I like the stealth that they are capable of using.

      Merlins are excellent fliers. They fly rapidly using quick wing flaps. They are extremely agile. What they are admired for most is their dive.

     Recently I saw a really sneaky method of hunting used by a merlin. Earlier this winter the Bohemian waxwings were using a huge poplar tree near my house for  perching between feedings. We've all seen this were hundreds of waxwings land in one tree for a few minutes. They rest, preen and socialize for a few minutes. It's an awesome sight to see so many birds in one location. There is usually much milling about as individual birds look for a good spot to perch. One time I looked out my window to see how the waxwings were doing and there were no birds present which is normal as they rotate around the neighborhood. Then something caught my eye. There was a single bird in the tree . It was a merlin! So the crafty beggar was waiting in the tree hoping all the waxwings would land in the tree without seeing him. What a sneaky devil. I wasn't patient enough to watch and see if the merlin was successful in his hunt. 

     Has anybody seen a similar tactic used by merlins?

Close Encounters with a Merlin

       I have always admired the merlin with its rapid wing beat and exuberant flying patterns. The merlin is a small falcon with streaked underparts,  the male with a blue gray back and female with light brown back. The merlin winters in central Alberta. My residential district in Red Deer usually has a resident merlin for my viewing pleasure.

      A few days ago I had a new exprience with a merlin. A female flew by me at eye level a little more than arms length from me. Super experience.

      I was out about 10:30 AM for a walk. The merlin buzzed a spruce tree on the opposite side of the street. There were several house sparrows in the spruce but they did not flush...just made a racket. The merlin quickly darted over the house and disappeared. So I thought well that's interesting and I resumed walking. I had walked about 10 steps when I heard the merlin coming again. ki ki ki! This time the merlin flew right by me at eye level. I could clearly see all markings.

      What was she up to? After my shock I realized I was standing beside a large spruce tree which had house sparrows in it. I suppose the merlin wanted to use me as post to try and flush the sparrows. The sparrows didn't buy the trick. They squawked but did not flush and the merlin disappeared over the house.

      I'm sure that the merlin caught breakfast shortly as she was intent on scaring something out of the trees where it could be caught.
  
     Another hunting technique used by the merlin is to get under a flock of bohemian waxwings. The waxwings rise to get away from the merlin. Sooner or later one of the waxwings will tire and drop out of the flock. The merlin hones in on the hapless individual and like a bullet contacts the falling bird and the merlin has its prey.