THE RUBY-CROWNED KINGLET. 



{Regulus calendula.) 



The Ruby-crowned Kinglet, "that nat- 

 ty little dandy," is only known in the 

 larger portion of the United States dur- 

 ing its migrations, for it breeds further 

 north, aside from the Rocky Mountains, 

 the Sierra Nevadas and, it is said, to 

 some extent in the mountains of Arizona. 

 Its range covers North America from 

 the Arctic coast southward, and it win- 

 ters in the southern United States and 

 southward to Guatemala. During their 

 spring migrations these Kinglets may be 

 seen among the blossom-decked fruit 

 trees, closely examining the blossoms, 

 partly opened b'uds and unfolding leaves 

 for insects, which form their food. Dur- 

 ing the fall migrations they are less con- 

 spicuous. They frequent woods, or- 

 chards and shrubbery and are often mis- 

 taken for wood warblers as they flit from 

 point to point among the foliage. Their 

 food also resembles that of these war- 

 blers, but in their method of climbing 

 about the branches, while searching for 

 insects, they are more like the chicka- 

 dees. They are much more tame and 

 lively than are the w-arblers, and they 

 frequently move their wings in a nervous 

 manner. They also utter a scolding note 

 which, with their nervous motions and 

 activity, make them seem quite wren-like. 

 In fact, they are sometimes called Ruby- 

 crowned Wrens. These dainty and di- 

 minutive birds are very useful to man- 

 kind. They not only search for their 

 food of minute insects, their larvae and 

 eggs, on the foliage and twigs at the 

 top of trees, but also search the twigs of 

 branches lower down and on shrubbery. 

 It is said that they have one very notice- 

 able habit ; they are thorough and if not 

 disturbed seldom leave the twig upon 

 which they have lighted until they have 

 cleared it of insect life. 



During the nesting season the King- 

 lets frequent the coniferous forests, in 

 the trees of which their nests are built 

 at an elevation of from six to fifty or 



more feet above the ground. Their nests 

 are somewhat globular in form and usu- 

 ally semi-pensile. They are constructed 

 with moss and fine strips of fibrous bark 

 which are carefully interwoven and lined 

 with feathers. Sometimes large families 

 are raised, for the number of eggs varies 

 from five to ten. The Kinglets are cour- 

 ageous during the nesting season and do 

 not hesitate to attack birds much larger 

 than themselves. In his "Birds of 

 Alaska," Mr. E. W. Nelson relates an 

 incident observed by Dr. Dall. A pair 

 of Kinglets "which appeared about to 

 commence a nest in a small clump of 

 bushes tore to pieces a half-finished nest 

 of the rusty-headed blackbird, and upon 

 the return of the female blackbird the 

 pair of pigmies attacked and drove her 

 away. This was repeated several times, 

 and when Dr. Dall left Nulato the quar- 

 rel was still unsettled." 



Often the first indication of the pres- 

 ence of the Ruby-crowned Kinglets are 

 their somewhat garrulous and grating 

 call-notes. These notes sometimes precede 

 its marvellously beautiful and powerful 

 song. This song is noted for its soft- 

 ness, sweetness, and its brightness and 

 vigor of expression. Mr, Ridgway has 

 described the song as "an inexpressibly 

 delicate and musical warble, astonish- 

 ingly protracted at times, and most beau- 

 tifully varied by softly rising and falling 

 cadences, and the most tender whistlings 

 imaginable." It hardly seems possible 

 that such a loud and powerful a song 

 could emanate from the throat of so 

 small a bird. Dr. Coues has said : "The 

 sound-producing organ is not larger than 

 a pinhead, and the muscles that move it 

 are almost microscopic shreds of flesh, 

 yet its song may be heard two hundred 

 yards." The song must be heard, for it 

 defies description and any syllabic ren- 

 dering of the notes is unsatisfactory. 

 One of the best descriptions of this ex- 

 quisite song is that of Mr. Chapman. It 



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