Male Ruby Crowned Kinglet in album favorites
Oct 21st, 2006, by Alex Zorach
This photo shows a male ruby-crowned kinglet. This photo was taken in White Clay Creek State Park in Delaware, in the fall. The bird is perched in the foliage of a cherry tree, I think a wild black cherry. The fact that it is fall is evident by the tough nature of the leaves in this picture. Kinglets winter in Delaware, and are gone by the time in summer when the leaves would be anywhere near as dark and tough as in this picture. The insect damage on the leaves further clues one in that these leaves have been around for a while.
The ruby-crowned kinglet is relatively easy to identify, and this photo shows nearly all of the field marks. The bright ruby-red crown is visible in this photo; I have seen many kinglets and I have very rarely seen this crown. The crown is only present on males, and is usually not visible unless the bird is agitated...in which case it raises it, displaying the red feathers. Note the broken eye ring, distinct on the sides of the eye, but not present directly above and below the eye. Note also the fine yellow lines on the wing; this species is easily distinguished from the other kinglet in the region, the golden-crowned kinglet, not only by its pattern on the face and head, but also by a very different wing pattern. Usually even a brief view of part of the bird is enough to definitively identify it as one species or the other.
Kinglets tend to be tame birds, often allowing close approach, and being relatively easy to photograph. That said, this is still one of my favorite bird photos that I've ever taken.