Waxwing Bombycilla garrulus   [Linnaeus, 1758]

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   Page updated:16-January-2013

Order: Passeriformes Family: Bombycillidae
BTO Codes: WX, WAXWI EURING No: 10480
Number in Britain: 100 birds (Winter)
Conservation Status:
UK: GREEN
European: Not a species of concern
Global: (Details)
Links to: Images   Videos   Sound  
Status in UK: (A)  Winter Visitor
Subspecies: garrulus recorded in Britain (of 2 subsp. in the world)
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Length: 18 cm Wingspan: 34 cm Weight: M/F: 63 g    
Scientific name from: Gr.: Bombukos=silk + Mod. L. cilla=tail and L.: garrulus=chattering
World Distribution: BREEDS: n Eurasia, nw North America, WINTERS: Irregularly to s Europe & c US
Habitat: Coniferous forest, birch woodland
Diet: Summer, insects esp. midges & mosquitos, winter, fruit and plant buds from trees

Population and Distribution

Population Trend: No population trend available
Distribution: Atlas Maps   
British Population Size:
    Winter: 100 individuals in 1981-84     Note: Probably now an overestimate
    First Record: York, 1680 [Fossil evidence from Devensian (last) glaciation, 10-120,000 yr ago]
    Conservation Status: GREEN
   Previous Assessments: 2002-2007 GREEN     1996-2001 GREEN  
   Races of Concern: garrulus GREEN
Habitat Occupancy (in the Breeding Season):
    No habitat data from BBS
Migration routes: Map of foreign ringing recoveries
European Population Size:
    Summer: 30 to 200 thousand pairs
Population Assesment from Birds in Europe
Distribution in Europe mapped by the EBCC Atlas
Listed on the Appendices/Schedules of: Bern(III)
Survey Results:

Breeding and Survival

Egg Size: 24 x 18 mm Egg Weight: 3.8 g (of which 5 % is shell)
Number of Nest Records: 0
Clutch Size: 5 eggs
Incubation: 13- 14 days   by the: Female
Fledging: 15 - 17days as: Altricial, naked
First Clutches Laid: Does not breed in Britain, or too few Nest Records
Number of Broods: 1
Number Ringed: Annual Totals
Adult Survival: No data
Juvenile Survival: No data
Age at First Breeding: 1 year Typical Lifespan: No data
Maximum Recorded Age: 2 years 11 months 24 days (set in 1977)
Read a summary of Ringing Recoveries

Biometrics

Ring Size: B+
Wing Length Adult: 117.4 ± 2.5     Range 110.0 - 126.0 mm, (N = 723)
Juvenile: 116.9 ± 2.6     Range 110.0 - 126.0 mm, (N = 350)
Male: 117.7 ± 2.5     Range 110.0 - 126.0 mm, (N = 369)
Female: 117.0 ± 2.5     Range 110.0 - 125.0 mm, (N = 321)
Weight Adult: 57.93 ± 4.61 Range 42.00 - 78.20 g , (N =650)
Juvenile: 55.4 ± 5.9 Range 38.5 - 72.6 . , (N =345)
Male: 57.97 ± 4.68 Range 43.80 - 78.20 g , (N =329)
Female: 57.88 ± 4.57 Range 42.00 - 76.00 g , (N =291)
Seasonal: Autumn 56.88 ± 5.78 (N = 95)   Winter 57.75 ± 5.10 (N = 983)  
Source: British Trust for Ornithology (2005) Ringing Scheme data

Other Names

Bohemian Waxwing
Gaelic: Canranach-dearg Welsh: Cynffon Sidan
Danish: Silkehale Dutch: Pestvogel
Finnish: Tilhi French: Jaseur boréal
German: Seidenschwanz Hungarian: Csonttollú
Icelandic: Silkitoppa Irish: Síodeiteach
Italian: Beccofrusone Norwegian: Sidensvans
Polish: Jemioluszka zwyczajna Portuguese: Tagarela-europeu
Spanish: Ampelis Swedish: Sidensvans

For More Information...

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BirdLife species page
Recent sightings and information from BirdGuides
All About Birds (from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology)
Details from the Patuxent Bird Identification Infocenter
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