Attentive readers might have noticed a recent, brief exchange in comments about how Golden-crowned Kinglets raise their “crowns”/crests when agitated, typically during altercations with other kinglets. With that in mind, here’s a series of nice shots, in chronological order, of a Ruby-crowned Kinglet in the brush adjacent Beach 11 @ Presque Isle State Park yesterday, exhibiting similar behavior. In the vicinity, at least 3-4 other mixed Golden-crowned and Ruby-crowned Kinglets:
In the good bird news front, reports of “fresh for spring” warblers are starting to trickle in for Erie County, PA, including Palm, Pine, and Yellow-rumped over the weekend. Here’s looking forward to warbler migration season getting fully underway!
The Kinglet was probably irked that the there was a photographer getting in its face! Hackles up, indeed!
I can see your jesting, but no, :), it was very, very intent on the other kinglets in the vicinity. Even from the pictures you can see it was looking regularly in different directions – this was it looking around to see the other kinglets flying around, and eventually there was a brief altercation of it chasing another kinglet around the brush for a short time.