I’m asking for a waxwing fest this Christmas
I’M hoping for a waxwing Christmas this year and looking forward to reports about these Vikingvisitors from across the region, from supermarket car parks in Oldham town centre to flocks of forty in Stockport and small parties feeding on the remaining berries near Torside Picnic Site in Longdendale.
I’m asking Santa for a waxwing fest and I think I’ve been good enough.
The photograph seen here is so much more than a great shot of waxwings feeding on apples on a stick held by a young boy; it is a metaphor of lost innocence, days gone by and the simple but utter beauty of the wildlife around us.
The birds had landed in the garden of a guy on Fair Isle, and realising they were very tame he shoved a few apples on a stick and asked his son to go into the garden.
It represents innocence because the birds had flown South from the high Arctic before touching land, perhaps never having seen man before. No fear and, perhaps as my mum used to say, ‘Hunger is a good sauce’. Poor crop of berries in the far North of Scandinavia?
Of days gone by because many of our native birds would have been as bold in the past before we began to exterminate them in one way or another.
And the ‘of beauty’ part is surely obvious? However, whilst we admire our winter visitors who do not normally need our help, with a cold snap upon us it is a timely reminder that our resident birds need our help to endure severe weather conditions.
Food like meal worms, fat-balls, crushed peanuts, dried fruit, seeds and grain compensate for birds’ natural food when it is covered in snow and ice and impossible to get to.
Leftovers like grated cheese, porridge oats, soft fruit, unsalted bacon, cooked rice, pasta and the insides of cooked potatoes are also a good source of energy for garden birds, and water for both drinking and bathing is vital. Here are some tips:
1. Put out feed regularly, especially in severe weather. Set up a bird table and use high calorie seed mixes. The table can also be used to put out kitchen scraps such as grated cheese, pastry and porridge oats.
2. Put out hanging feeders for black sunflower seeds, sunflower hearts, sunflower-rich mixes or unsalted peanuts.
3. Ensure a supply of fresh water every day. If it is very cold use tepid water but do not use any antifreeze products.
4. Put out fruit, such as apples and pears, for blackbirds, song thrushes and other members of the thrush family.
5. Food bars or fat hung up or rubbed into the bark of trees is a great help for treecreepers, goldcrests and many other species.
6. Put up nest boxes to provide roost sites for the smaller birds. They will then be used for breeding later in the year.
Judging by your e-mails, many readers have made the journey to see the RSPB’s reserve at Dovestones, Saddleworth, indeed some of your photographs have appeared here, memorably Mike Price’s shots of the resident peregrine chicks.
Dovestones’ trees are currently playing host to large groups of fieldfares. Some of these birds will have travelled from as far as Scandinavia and will be feeding at Dovestones before commencing the next part of their journey to their winter grounds.
If you’re really lucky, there may be some waxwings about.
Look for mountain hares turning white and red grouse scratching out a living in the heather.
Mallards don’t seem to mind what the weather is like and stay put.
To find out more about other forthcoming events at Dovestones, visit www. rspb.org.uk/dovestone