Japanese Waxwing
Bombycilla japonica
The only waxwing endemic to the old world, this species is similar to its Bohemian relative, but with pink instead of yellow tail tips and a yellow-tinged belly. Irruptive and inconsistent in its movements during the colder months, following crops of berries to wintering grounds, where it frequently gathers in large and noisy feeding flocks. Combination of dark mask, loose crest, and overall brown coloration distinguish it from similarly-sized non-waxwing species in its range.
Identification
The Japanese waxwing is about 18 cm in length and its plumage is mostly pinkish-brown. The Japanese waxwing has a pointed crest, a black throat, a black stripe through the eye, a pale yellow centre to the belly and a black tail with a red tip. The wings have a pattern of black, grey and white with a reddish-brown stripe running across them. Its call is a high-pitched trill but there is no true song.<p>Unlike the other species of waxwing, it lacks the row of waxy red feather-tips on the wing which gives the birds their name. Japanese waxwings often occur in mixed flocks with Bohemian waxwings which, as well as having the row of waxy tips, are slightly larger with a yellow tail-tip, greyish centre to the belly and no reddish-brown stripe across the wing.
Taxonomy
Genus: Bombycilla; Family: Bombycillidae; Order: Passeriformes.
- Scientific name
- Bombycilla japonica
- Authority
- (Siebold, 1824)
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Bombycillidae
- Genus
- Bombycilla
Range and habitat
The Japanese waxwing breeds in the dense coniferous pine forest of the Russian Far East (Amur, Manchuria, Kamchatka, etc.) and in Heilongjiang province, north-east China. It is experiencing some threats with extinction, due to loss and degradation of its preferred, forest habitat.<p>Outside of the breeding season, this waxwing winters on Japan, the Korean Peninsula and Eastern China; the exact distribution is irregular, as birds will travel and move in search of food, mainly seasonal berries, and birds may be common in a certain area during one year but move away the next. In Japan, it is generally present from November through April; few birds winter on Hokkaidō, but in south-western Japan (parts of Kyūshū, Shikoku, Honshu), it outnumbers the Bohemian waxwing. The winter habitat is open woodland, low-lying farmland, or low mountains, with birds frequently visiting the berry-laden trees of parks and private gardens.<p>Vagrant birds have been known to appear in Hong Kong, Central China and Taiwan; records from further afield, such as in Europe, South Asia or the Middle East, are more than likely to be escapees from captivity (or aviculture) than genuinely wild birds.
- Migration
- Complete migrants
Behavior
Migration pattern: Complete migrants.
Conservation
Population trend: declining.
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
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