Two of the three Bohemian Waxwings!
I was hoping to go birding this morning on my day off, but the cold and windy weather prompted me to opt for spending a few hours inside the warmth of Bolz Conservatory at Olbrich Gardens in Madison. Upon arrival, the moment I opened my car door I heard a Bohemian Waxwing call. I looked up and there it was about 20 feet above me. Though I didn't have my digiscoping gear along, I did have my Swarovski 8x20 bins and a point-and-shoot camera. The single Bohemian Waxwing was associating with a large Cedar Waxwing flock (~50 birds). When I saw that that waxwings were going to a crab apple tree right at the conservatory entrance, I grabbed my camera and took a couple of documentation shots. To my astonishment, there were three Bohemian Waxwings! They were perched at eye-level mere feet from the sidewalk and giving excellent views. I told people inside the conservatory; a few of them appreciated the significance of the sighting and got to see the waxwings up close. I kept track of the birds for about an hour, but the flock flew behind the building a little after 11:00am. On my way home I found over 200 waxwings at Greenway Station in Middleton. I briefly scanned them with my bins but found no Bohemians. You never know!
© 2013 Mike McDowell