A small flock of Waxwings (sidensvans) finally arrived at the end of November and have been foraging in the garden since (rowans / rogn failed this year). In these videos, they are eating apples, elderberry and guelder rose berries (epler, svarthyll and krossved). I’ve heard tawny owl (kattugle) calling in the garden regularly recently too and the last video is a recording of one calling.
A female blackcap (munk) feeding on ripe elderberries (svarthyll; Sambucus nigra). With no heavy frosts so far well into November, two flower clusters have appeared on the tree!
Reflowering elder: Unusual combination of elderflowers and a kayak on the fjord in November:
I never weary of watching waxwings (sidensvans). Here are 3 videos from snowy Monday this week when one of the biggest flocks this winter descended on the garden with some 330 birds estimated from the first video below, many of which fed on the last elderberries (second and third videos below)!
NB! The windows are now clean :)
More waxwing (sidensvans) videos from the garden.
1) Eating elderberries
2) Displaying flycatching skills
3) A dazed bird on the ground outside the front door; presumably it collided with the house in a drunken state…it ended well, flying off after the video ends.
Part of the biggest flock of waxwings (sidensvans) in the garden today, around 350 birds!….seriously distracted all day by these photogenic arctic “parrots”! Feeding on yew (barlind), hawthorn (hagtorn), elderberries (svarthyll) and guelder rose (krossved) berries…
1. Waxwings in flight
2. Waxwings on the yew tree by the kitchen window
3. Waxwings on yew berries in the neighbour’s garden
4. Waxwings and sunrise
5. In this film you can hear waxwing poop falling to the ground…I thought it was raining!
Sambucus nigra “Samyl” is a new Danish variety of elderberry / svarthyll. It is very productive, the earliest elderberry I’ve grown (they are marginal here), hardy and it has large berries and large umbels of flowers…
I’ll be offering hardwood cuttings to members of Norwegian Seed Savers (Kvann) this winter (to be a member go to http://kvann.org and click on “Bli medlem”!
