For the last several days, I’ve read reports of folks spotting groups of Bohemian Waxwings throughout central Vermont, including a sighting yesterday in Montpelier.  I had errands to run this morning and sort of looked around with no results and sort of forgot about them.

However, I forgot the videos I had to return so this afternoon, I fired up the truck and returned to town — and spotted a gaggle of birds in a maple tree off Elm Street.  Hoping that they were not starlings, I got the binoculars on them as they flocked to a couple of fruit trees on the corner of Pearl Street.  They were waxwings alright — beautiful in the afternoon light, and fairly cooperative.

76 Bohemian Waxwings in downtown Montpelier, VT

They stayed put for about five minutes in a maple while I counted them — I got 76 of them give or take a couple.  I did not see any Cedar Waxwings mixed in.  The only camera I had was a small point & shoot so the image captures the number but not the beauty.  When I came back 15 minutes later they were off somewhere else.  For me, it was a great reward for the extra trip to town.