512 Birds of Colorado 



along the western mountains to northern CaUfornia, Arizona and New 

 Mexico ; in winter south tlirough the United States and Mexico 

 to Guatemala. 



The Ruby-crowned Kinglet is a conamon bird throughout Colorado, 

 in the plains a migrant, in the mountains a sunomer resident. It 

 arrives from the south about the middle of April and passes on north 

 or up into the mountains before the middle of May, descends again 

 in September, and leaves the State in October. Its breeding range 

 extends vertically from about 7,000 feet — Middle Park (Carter ajmd 

 Cooke) to timber line. The following are breeding records : Buffalo 

 Peaks, Park eo. (Batty), Twin Lakes, 9,200 feet (Scott), Boswell, 

 11,000 feet (E. Lewis apud Cooke), and Hancock, 11,000 feet (Stone), 

 all in Chaffee co.; Gold Hill and Ward inBoiilder co. (Gale) ; near Fort 

 Garland, 10,000 feet (Henshaw), San Juan co., 7,000 to 10,500 feet 

 (Drew). During the spring migration its range extends out on the 

 plains as far as Limon, in Lincoln co., where it has been taken, April 

 30th and May 19th, by Aiken. 



Habits. — ^The Ruby-crowiied is a very sociable bird, 

 especially in the fall, when it may generally be seen in 

 small parties with Bluebirds, Titmice and Warblers, 

 pursuing its way through the w^oods and very actively 

 engaged in securing small insects from the branches 

 and trunks of trees, and also catching them occasionally 

 in flight. It has a very sweet and modulated song, 

 remarkably loud and strong for so small a bird. 



The first nest and eggs known were secured by Batty 

 in the Buffalo Peaks, in Park co., on June 21st, 1873. 

 This nest was in a spruce tree, about fifteen feet up, and 

 contained five young and one egg. It has subsequently 

 been taken by a good many other collectors, including 

 Gale, who found a number in the mountains above 

 Boulder. They were almost always placed in a spruce 

 tree, from eight to fifty feet above the ground, sometimes 

 almost pensile and woven to the smaller twigs, sometimes 

 simply saddled on a horizontal bough. The nest itself 

 is a large and loosely woven structure of fine moss, soft 

 stringy fibres and spider web, lined with hair or feathers. 



