Little King: The Ruby-crowned Kinglet

Image via WikipediaI’m behind the counter at the East Lansing, MI Wild Birds Unlimited store and I’m hearing a bird outside the window saying “look-at-me, look-at-me”. I wish you could see this pine tree full of tiny, chatty, dancing kinglets.

The Ruby-crowned Kinglet (Regulus calendula) has olive-grey plumage with a thin black bill and short tail. The male bears a red crown which gives the bird its common name. At 4 inches they are about an inch shorter than a chickadee. They breed in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula but they migrate through mid-Michigan September through late October on their way to the southern U.S. and Mexico.

They forage in trees or shrubs, eating small insects and spiders, some berries, seeds and tree sap. I’m watching them upside down, then right side up, and flicking their wings like a Flamenco Fan Dancer. According to the Birds of Michigan field guide by Ted Black, the wing flicking is thought to startle insects into movement, allowing the kinglet to spot them and pounce.