This medium-sized passerine is brown overall with a pale yellow wash on the belly. It is named for the waxy red tips on some of the wing feathers. Also look for the yellow-tipped tail, sleek crest, short bill, and black mask and throat bordered by white. Thin, high-pitched call is distinctive. Usually in flocks in open woods and edges of woodlands. Often perches in tops of leafless trees. Shifts diet from insects to primarily berries in the fall and winter.