BERRY DIET
In winter, Waxwings eat masses of berries and each bird can eat double its weight in a day. This high sugar content, berry diet needs special adaptations to deal with the consequences. All that food going in one end inevitably leads to a lot coming out the other. Studies have shown that Waxwings defecate every four minutes when feeding on berries… you might want to think about where you park the car when supermarket shopping in the winter…
The bird’s liver is enlarged to deal with the high sugar content and it also deals effectively with alcohol. This may seem strange at first, but many of the berries they eat are beginning to break down in the cold weather and, as they break down, some of the sugars convert into pure alcohol and, occasionally, people report finding Waxwings unable to fly temporarily, due to intoxication. Having said that, they are regarded as being able to hold their drink. It is thought that, pound for pound, Waxwings could very easily drink us humans under the table!
A birding friend was recently telling me about the last time he had seen Waxwings, but instead of using the word ‘ irruption’ to describe their numbers, he used the word ‘ infusion’ by mistake. Now, as far as I know, Waxwings don’t have a collective noun for a group of them and, considering their abilities to cope with an alcoholic diet, I reckon that mistake could be just what is needed. An Infusion of Waxwings? It has a certain ring to it, don’t you think?