Generally when I go birding (and I think most birders are the same) I tend to go to areas where there aren't too many people. So think, woods, nature reserves, coast and moorland. Apart from walkers and dog walkers therefore I tend not to connect with non-birders too much whilst out birding. I still find despite the popularity of birding and birdwatching, the RSPB now has over 1million members, people seem to throw birders odd looks and glances.
However there is one bird that very often turns up far from normal birding haunts during winter. Supermarket car parks and suburban housing estates are often the habitat of choice for the Waxwing. There is good reason why this bird that breeds in boreal forest can often be found in large groups hanging around the local Tesco, berries.
In winter Waxwing switch their diet almost exclusively to berries and are faced with the choice of staying put in their native forests or travelling many miles in what are known as 'irruptive' movements in search of food. Look closely at your nearest Tesco or Sainsbury and you find that of the small number of trees token planted in surrounding car parks the Rowan, one of the Waxwing's favourite food sources is often quite common.
In some years many thousands can arrive from Russia and Scandanavia in the UK in search of food. This year numbers have been very low until the last two weeks when an unusual late winter movement has brought a few hundred over the North Sea, Small flocks of between two and 40 have been seen at various locations around the North East where a few berries or fruit still hang from trees.
The two pictured above were part of a group of 37 frequenting a housing estate in Ashington prompting many local birders to depart their usual haunts for the pavements and streets around Nursery Park hoping to catch a glimpse of these colourful visitors. in turn I noticed that the watchers became the watched as curtains twitched and residents stopped to ask what we were watching and what all the fuss was over.
Once the berries are gone the Waxwing will move on, but hopefully these occasional visits by such beautiful birds might spark an interest for one or two of the non-birding residents.