Bird Watching: Bohemian Waxwings Close-ups Finally!, 1 by Grasmussen

Grasmussen wrote:
Thanks everyone for all the nice comments. I had to search the plant files to learn that "Rowan Trees" are what we call European Mountain Ash, Sorbus aucauparia. They have escaped cultivation in parts of Alaska, because the Bohemian Waxwings are dispersing the seeds. The native Mountain Ash, Sorbus sitchenaia, is slower growing, and more of a scrubby bush, which is seldom used for landscaping. The European one is very commonly used for landscaping in this area. Both species are the primary winter food of the Bohemians. There is some concern about the spread of this non native species.

Todd, I have seen flocks of thousands, so many they look like rapidly moving gray clouds. During a blizzard in January, the mass migration came though Anchorage this year. There were so many birds they ate nearly all of the Mount Ash berries in the entire area, in only three days, and moved on. I was very disappointed the weather wasn't fit to get any photos at the time.