EASTERN GOLDEN-CROWNED KINGLET 391 



In spite of their almost universal insect hunt in winter, I noticed one 

 Golden-crowned Kinglet fly over and take two bites from each one of 

 two persimmon fruits on January 1, 1927." 



This is the only reference I can find to indicate that either this 

 kinglet or its westera race ever eats any vegetable food; this is strange, 

 as the ruby-crowned kinglet takes a small amount of fruit and seeds. 

 I have often seen golden-crowned kinglets foraging in the Japanese 

 barberry bushes about my house; the bushes were full of bright red 

 berries, but I could not see that the kinglets ever touched any of 

 them. They were probably feeding on some form of insect life, too 

 small for me to see. Incidentally, I have noticed that none of the 

 birds seem to like these barberries, though the common, wild bar- 

 berry is very popular. 



Behavior. — Golden-crowned kinglets are tame and confiding little 

 creatures. They pay but little attention to the close presence of 

 humans, and even come flitting about on the low branches or in the 

 bushes near us, with beady little eyes glistening below their glowing 

 crowns, and frequently opening and closing their little wings with 

 their characteristic quivering motion. 



Two quotations will suffice to illustrate their tameness and friendli- 

 ness. A. H. Wood (1884) relates this experience with them while he 

 was on a boat in Michigan: "One morning we found our boat invaded 

 by eight or ten of these birds. It was not long before they found 

 their way into the cabin, attracted there by the large number of flies, 

 and at dinner time they caused no little amusement and some annoy- 

 ance by perching on the heads of the passengers and on the various 

 dishes which covered the table. I caught flies, which they would 

 readily take from my hand with a quick flutter. I caught several, 

 and even when in my hand, they manifested no fear, but lay quiet 

 and passive." Cynthia Church (1927) found them very friendly in 

 her garden; she writes: "On October 15, Golden-crowns became so 

 tame that when I followed them quietly they allowed me to approach 

 them and even to stroke them. Even when I patted and stroked 

 their beautiful crest or parted their wings, they showed no fear. 

 They even sat on my hands or lit on my coat. They were incredibly 

 friendly." 



Voice. — The golden-crowned kinglet is no such brilliant singer as the 

 ruby-crowned, but it has a pretty little song at times. Aretas A. 

 Saunders has given me the following description of it: "The song of the 

 golden-crowned kinglet is much less musical and pleasing than that of 

 the ruby-crowned, yet it bears a certain resemblance. The song is in 

 two parts. The first part is a series of rather long, squeaky, very high- 

 pitched notes, either all on the same pitch, or the pitch gradually 



