Seeking Winter Waxwings

Before the latest rounds of snowstorms and icy roads complicated the simple pleasure of going for a walk, we enjoyed clear sunny days of walking along the road at the top of the hill. One afternoon, as I strolled past several yards where mature fruit trees grow, I heard thin high-pitched trills coming from overhead, and saw more than a dozen birds moving around the top of one of the trees. I had a good idea who they were, but without binoculars, which I had carelessly left at home on the kitchen counter, I had to rely on various clues.

Bird Watch

by Jean Preis BN Columnist

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Eileen Grant Bridgton

Shoebox Drive

To The Editor:

I am writing to thank Bridgton-area residents for sharing the true meaning of Christmas with children in need this past holiday season. Generosity throughout contributed to a successful shoebox gift collection season at drop-off locations for the Samaritan’s Purse project Operation Christmas Child.

Across the United States, the project collected over 9.3 million shoebox gifts in 2022. Combined with those collected from partnering countries in 2022, the ministry is now sending nearly 10.6 million shoebox gifts to children worldwide.

Through shoeboxes — packed with fun toys, school supplies, and hygiene items — Bridgton-area volunteers brought joy to children in need around the world. Each giftfilled shoebox is a tangible expression of God’s love, and it is often the first gift these children have ever received. Through the continued generosity of donors since 1993, Operation Christmas Child has collected and delivered more than 209 million gift-filled shoeboxes to children in more than 170 countries and territories. This year, Samaritan’s Purse delivered its milestone 200 millionth shoebox, which was packed on a country-wide tour and then hand-delivered to a young girl in Ukraine.

Across Maine, shoebox packers often shop for deals on shoebox items throughout the year, and many serve at a deeper level by becoming a yearround volunteer. Information about ways area participants can get involved year-round can also be found at samaritanspurse.org/occ or by calling 518-437-0690.

Although local drop-off locations for gifts are closed until Nov. 13-20, 2023, anyone can still be a part of this life-changing project by conveniently packing a shoebox gift online in just a few simple clicks at samaritanspurse.org/ buildonline.

These simple gifts, packed with love, send a message to children worldwide that they are loved and not forgotten.

Sincerely,

Lizette Miller Samaritan’s Purse Boone, NC

What birds would be here in a flock in the middle of winter, around fruit trees? Robins and Cedar Waxwings can be seen around here at this time of year, and will sometimes feast together on fruit, and occasionally Bohemian Waxwings can be found with them. Bohemians, slightly larger than their Cedar Waxwing relatives, breed in Alaska and the far northwest of Canada. Outside of the breeding season large flocks of them move south to roam the northern tier of North America, in search of fruit trees or mountain ash trees, and berries, which they swallow whole.

When I heard their distinctive high-pitched trill, I looked up and saw about twenty birds moving around in the trees. They began to descend, and when about a dozen of them landed in a low bush directly in front of me I could clearly see their crest, and bright yellow at the tip of the tail. A white patch in their wings, an unmarked gray breast, and dark cinnamon or rust color on the underside of the tail confirmed they were Bohemian Waxwings. Cedar Waxwings are similar but the breast, belly, and sides are soft pale yellow, and the underside of the tail is white.

In winter Bohemian Waxwings are nomadic and unpredictable, so it is always a treat to find them. Many years ago, a friend had phoned to tell me there was a flock of them in a tree beside the bank on Main Street. I got into my car and drove there, but found only Rock Pigeons lined up along the roofs. Then, I had checked several other places where we had found Bohemians in the past: behind the church at the top of the hill, where one year during the Christmas Bird Count we had found 88 of them: and in the crabapple trees in front of

WAXWINGS, Page 2B