Cedar waxwing pair in east-end?

[SarahBHood]

At dawn this morning I was drawn by pretty, high-pitched chirps, some sounding like a much prettier version of the "walk now" traffic sound and others on one note. I traced it to a pair of birds that were a little shorter and much slimmer than cardinals, but with prominent crests and a pinkish hue (insofar as I could tell in the half-light) to their upper bodies. Could they have been anything other than waxwings? (Coxwell/Dundas)

[mr.sharp-photo]

At dawn this morning I was drawn by pretty, high-pitched chirps, some sounding like a much prettier version of the "walk now" traffic sound and others on one note. I traced it to a pair of birds that were a little shorter and much slimmer than cardinals, but with prominent crests and a pinkish hue (insofar as I could tell in the half-light) to their upper bodies. Could they have been anything other than waxwings? (Coxwell/Dundas)

surprised to see you on the bird forum! welcome, sarah.

wouldn't bet on cedar waxwings. they kind of sound like cats to me. but the pinkish hue is either a waxwing or a mourning dove

[SarahBHood]

I only drop in when I'm either researching something or pleased/curious about a bird I've spotted. I'm a very poor birdwatcher

My birds of this morning certainly had the cute spiky head of waxwings. Can't think of anything else with that slender, crested profile. The song was distinctive and not usual in our neighourhood, so I was wondering whether there might be something else...

Cheers,
S.

[Trillian Flummox]

If you want to take the time, you might try listening to some song samples of both Waxwings and Cardinals. It might help you feel much more confident about the id (but your description does sound like Cedar Waxwings to me). Here's a link to the largest collection of bird recordings, the Macaulay Library: http://macaulaylibrary.org

-kris ito

[SarahBHood]

Wow, a great resource! Yup, it was them all right! Thanks!