Watch out for Waxwings: Seldom-seen birds are visiting Ireland now

As the new year begins, be sure to keep an eye out for waxwing birds, reports Ryan Butler.

These small birds, around the same size as a starling (7 to 9 inches in length), visit Ireland from Scandinavia during the harsh winters, searching for food.

According to Tallaght native Julie Smith, her interest in these birds was inspired by her profession as a photographer, and she “didn’t want to miss this opportunity” as the birds were last seen in Ireland five or six years ago.

Patience was a key process involved in taking the photos, as well as spotting a flock of over 30 waxwings in a housing estate where there were some “berry-filled rowan trees” and having a good camera and lens.

Tallaght photographer Julie Smith

Julie thinks waxwings could flock to Ireland for a “number of reasons,” such as an increase in breeding or a shortage of berries due to the failure of the berry crop in Scandinavia caused by poor summer weather or over-exhausted crops.

If readers want to keep an eye out for waxwings, they have a large, orange-pink crest; they are reddish-brown with a black throat, a small black mask around its eye, yellow and white in the wings, and a yellow-tipped tail.