There are waxwings everywhere this year! They are being reported from towns and villages all over the country, including South Cambridgeshire. There were three or four in Fowlmere village at the end of last week, and currently there is a flock in Hauxton.
My impression is that they seem to prefer berries of ornamental trees such as Sorbus, rather than the haws on our indigenous hawthorns. Haws are preferred by redwings and fieldfares, so at the reserve we have seen many of those Scandinavian thrushes but almost no waxwings, despite the abundance of berries.
A flock of 17 waxwings spent half an hour on the reserve almost three weeks ago, but the rest seemed to have passed us by, until this afternoon. While checking some habitat management tasks in the middle of the reserve, surrounded by redwings and fieldfares, I chanced upon a small group of waxwings perched in a willow bush by the path. As I watched and waited, I became aware of more, some as they flew into view, others as they made their distinctive trilling calls behind me. Then suddenly something spooked everything, and they all took off. I managed to count 25 waxwings before they flew out of sight towards the southern end of the reserve; there could have been more.
I didn't see any of the waxwings feeding, just sitting around, so I don't know if they will return to the same spot tomorrow. If they are seen again, I will send a messsage to Cambirds and Birdguides, and we will think about how our human visitors can get to see these fantastic and beautiful visitors from the north.