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This Morning Outside

by Diane Porter

January 6, 2014
Birdwatching Dot Com
Fairfield, Iowa

A single cedar waxwing sat this morning and flared its tail as if to show it off. And there was really something to show, as this cedar bird's tail was bordered not with the usual cedar-waxwing yellow but with bright orange.

I've heard of cedar waxwings with orange-tipped tails, but this was the first one I ever saw. (More precisely, it was the first one I ever noticed.)

The orange is thought to be caused by what the bird eats. Yellow, red, and orange feathers usually are caused by chemicals called carotenoids, which is the stuff that makes carrots carrot colored.

Why this particular cedar waxwing chows down on more carotenoids than the other cedar waxwings in the flock, now that is a mystery.

Cedar Waxwing

Here's another view of the tail, with it folded, so that the orange is even stronger.

Cedar Waxwing


—Diane Porter

Chickadee on hand

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