tiny little bird --ruby-crowned kinglet? (1 Viewer)

[Craig Houghton]

tiny little bird --ruby-crowned kinglet? - Connecticut

As winter gets ready to shuffle off here in Connecticut, I'm quickly, and happily, being forced out of my comfort zone of familiar all-year birds. Then again, this might be a cold-weather friend that I've missed.

My best guess is a female ruby-crowned kinglet. Or, it might be a Least flycatcher, but I don't see or recall any lighter/redder bottom bill.

The bird was small enough to make the nearby chickadees look big.

Many thanks!

Craig

 

[lvn600]

I'd say its the Ruby-crowned Kinglet. 2nd pic has got the features including eye ring, shape, bill etc. I was looking at winter population density for R-C Kinglet and it showed a very small winter abundance for CT.

 

[Longspur23]

Are you sure that it is the same bird in both pics? The face is obscured in #1, but it certainly looks like it could be a Golden-crowned Kinglet. #2 is definitely a Ruby-crowned.

 

[KC Foggin]

Wing pattern would suggest the Golden-crowned Kinglet. Neat little micro birds.

 

[Craig Houghton]

Here's some more pics. I can't promise it's the same bird since I had to change batteries, but I'm just about positive it is. Despite the battery change, the timestamps on the files say less than a minute passed and this was the same tree.

I hope these help.

One is out of focus. The other is the same pic as above but with upped levels.

-Craig

 

[Miedin]

The first picture shows both white and black on the head so I would say that one is a Golden-crowned kinglet, the second one is a Ruby-crowned Kinglet.

 

[Craig Houghton]

The first picture shows both white and black on the head so I would say that one is a Golden-crowned kinglet, the second one is a Ruby-crowned Kinglet.

I'm looking for the black on the head, but I'm not sure I see it. It looks more like a shadow from a possible crest to me. Also, the wing bands seem to match up a bit between the two. I'd love for it to be two different birds, but I'm not sure about it. The beak certainly looks to be the same.

Looking throught the responses here, chances are that I saw a ruby-crowned and a golden-crowned. Does that sound right to everyone?

-Craig

 

[AlexC]

Sounds right
Pic 1: Golden-crowned Kinglet (you can even see a hint of the golden crown)
Pic 2: Ruby-crowned Kinglet (it's all about head shape)
Pic 3: Ruby-crowned Kinglet (same)
Pic 4: Golden-crowned Kinglet (wingbars differ from Ruby and is clearly same bird from pic 1)

 

[chubri777]

i agree with overworkedirish...that's how i see it

 

[cavan wood]

I also agree with overworkedirish. The first photo shows white above the bill, followed by black, followed by a faint bit of gold. #4 also shows the white eyebrow line and NO broken eye ring. 2 and 3 are clearly ruby-crowned.

Mixed flocks of kinglets and chickadees are quite common.

Scott

 

[Terry O'Nolley]

As winter gets ready to shuffle off here in Connecticut, I'm quickly, and happily, being forced out of my comfort zone of familiar all-year birds. Then again, this might be a cold-weather friend that I've missed.

My best guess is a female ruby-crowned kinglet. Or, it might be a Least flycatcher, but I don't see or recall any lighter/redder bottom bill.

The bird was small enough to make the nearby chickadees look big.

Many thanks!

Craig

Your first picture (first post) is of a Golden-crowned Kinglet. Look at the white wing bar, black patterns below the wingbars and the white striped face. The second pic (first post) is of a Ruby-crowned Kinglet. White wing bar, different patterning of black below the wing bar and a clear eye-ring.

In your second post, the first pic is a RCK and the second is a GCK.

 

[gthang]

Here in NY, I saw those tiny things flitting around my house. Haven't seen them yet this year, but I can tell you that the Ruby-Crowned Kinglet (only saw it once or twice, when it was perching on the patio table's support beams!) is more of a single-colored bird than the GOlden-Crowned. The Ruby-Crowned has no facial "mask", so to speak, while the Golden-Crowned does.

I thought the Flamecrest and Firecrest were the same as the North American birds, but apparently, they're not...