Waxwings
| Waxwings | ||||||||||||
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Waxwing ( Bombycilla garrulus ) |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name of the family | ||||||||||||
| Bombycillidae | ||||||||||||
| Swainson , 1831 | ||||||||||||
| Scientific name of the genus | ||||||||||||
| Bombycilla | ||||||||||||
| Vieillot , 1808 |
The waxwings ( Bombycilla , Bombycillidae) are a bird genus and family from the order of the passerines (Passeriformes), subordination songbirds (Passeres). The three very similar species of the genus occur in northern Europe, central and northern North America, and in Siberia and northeast Asia. The Central American silkcatchers (Ptiliogonatidae), formerly regarded as a subfamily of the waxwings, are now considered an independent family.
features
The waxwings are medium-sized birds with feathers that are silky smooth and dense. Their plumage color is predominantly brown with some black, red, or yellow markings.
Way of life
Waxwings live nomadically, are mostly sociable and feed on insects in summer and on fruits and berries in winter. They lay three to six eggs that are incubated for 12 to 14 days. The young birds fledge after 15 to 19 days.
species
- Waxwing ( B. garrulus )
- Blood Waxwing ( B. japonica )
- Cedar Waxwing ( B. cedrorum )
literature
- Christopher M. Perrins : The Great Encyclopedia of Birds. From the English, Orbis-Verlag, Munich 1996, ISBN 3-572-00810-7 .
Web links
- Worldbirdnames.org Waxwings Family Bombycillidae
Individual proof
- ↑ ( Page no longer available , search in web archives: Silky-flycatchers Family Ptiliogonatidae )