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Cedar-bird; Cedar Waxwing
Adult--Rich light grayish or purplish brown, with conspicuous crest; throat, forehead, and line in front and back of eye black; small scarlet tips to the wing (secondaries) and tail feathers; tail tipped with yellow; belly pale yellow. Length--7.19.
Breeding Range--From Virginia, the southern Alleghanies, Kentucky, Kansas, Arizona, etc., northward. (A. O. U. checklist.)
The nest is composed of grass, bark, fine roots, catkins, moss, rags, and twine, a fine, well-formed structure, which some-times has mud added to its long list of building materials. It is placed from five to twenty-five feet from the ground, usually in fruit trees or cedars. The eggs are pale gray or with a slight tinge of green, and thinly spotted with purplish black and light dull purplish; the number varies from 3 to 5. Size--.85 x .60. See Fig. 12, Plate B.
There is no bird so well groomed as the Waxwing; his toilet is made with the most scrupulous care; never is there a feather out of place, nor a spot of dirt on his velvety coat. Well-drilled companies of these birds may be seen flying rapidly from tree to tree in search of berries and seeds at all times, except during the immediate breeding season. When they are seen to be feeding on the alders, you may know it will not be long before the nest will be built. In the vicinity of New York, eggs may be found about the first week in June.