The Nature of Things

In my weekly roundup of news about birds and the environment, I've reported here about the arrival of two of our three winter warblers, the Orange-crowned and the Yellow-rumped . What is odd about that is that usually the first of the three warblers to show up in my yard is the Pine Warbler , but so far this fall, I had not seen one there. Until this week. Yep, they're here! I saw one at my feeders yesterday, so our complement of warblers is now complete. Moreover, I had begun to wonder whether we were going to have any Rufous Hummingbirds wintering with us this year as we have had for the last three years. Several passed through earlier in the fall but they kept moving and it seemed like our winter this year might be hummer-free. But wait! Sure enough, right on cue, a female Rufous has showed up at the Cape honeysuckle over the last few days and now she's visiting the feeders as well, so it looks like she might be staying. Finally, I generally do not see Cedar Waxwings ...

While working in my backyard this afternoon, I heard a familiar sound and looked up at the sycamore tree just in time to see a flock of perhaps twenty Cedar Waxwings take flight. Yes, one of my favorite winter birds is back in town and had dropped in to announce its arrival. Just in time for the Winter Solstice and just in time for Christmas. What a lovely Christmas present!