H2: Basic Description
The Golden-crowned Kinglet is a tiny bird that measures only 3.5 inches in length and weighs around 6 grams. It has olive-green feathers on its back, wings, and tail with two white wing bars while the underparts are grayish-white. As the name suggests, it has a bright yellow-orange crown stripe bordered by black stripes on each side of its head.
H2: Where To Find This Bird
Golden-crowned Kinglets can be found throughout North America during winter months but breed mainly in Canada’s boreal forests and high-elevation coniferous forests of western North America. During migration, they can also be seen in open woodlands or along forest edges.
H2: Habitat
As mentioned before, these birds prefer to nest in dense evergreen trees, particularly spruce trees because they provide optimal shelter against predators due to their thick foliage.
During migration or wintering season when they are not nesting, Golden-crowned kinglets can inhabit deciduous woods and shrublands as long as there is a mix of tall trees for feeding purposes.
H2: Food
These birds feed mainly on insects such as spiders, moths, flies beetles among others which they find among the needles of conifers trees. They have an incredible metabolism rate that requires them to eat almost continuously throughout daylight hours despite their small size.
They also supplement their diet with nectar from flowers when accessible especially during breeding season when insects might be scarce
H2: Cool Facts
• Despite being so small golden-crowed kinglets’ songs are incredibly loud.
• These birds make nests using spider silk making it strong enough to hold itself up even amid fierce winds.
• They have an extremely fast heart rate (1k beats per minute) due to their rapid metabolism rate which helps them stay warm amidst harsh weather conditions.
• The males have brighter crowns than females, which they use to attract mates.
In conclusion, the Golden-crowned Kinglet is a fascinating bird known for its extraordinary adaptations that allow it to survive harsh weather conditions and continue with breeding even at high elevations of mountain ranges.
