Red Maple flower make a tasty treat for Cedar Waxwings

It hasn't been a very good year for watching the Cedar Waxwings at the East Lansing Wild Birds Unlimited store. They are definitely a fun bird to listen to when I walk seed out to the cars.

Usually waxwings are here year round devouring the fruit, as they ripen, from apple trees that surround the store. However as many of you remember, last year Michigan produced a miserable fruit crop and the waxwings unfortunately had to find other food sources.

This week the Red Maple, one of the earliest trees to bloom, was full of the waxwings. Red Maple (Acer rubrum)is one of the most common and widespread deciduous trees of eastern North America. The common name comes from the early red flowers, springtime red winged seeds, and the red fall leaf coloration. Many birds enjoy the sweet flowers as a tasty treat like the waxwings, House Finches, robins, and cardinals.