Community of Tweeterland,


This comparison of field observations and notes, with speculations is one of the many things I like about the Tweeters community. We can continue to learn from each other.
The two times this year that I have seen this behavior by GC Kinglets, there was no wind. However, one followed a wind storm by one day and the other several days after the storm. There was no wind or rain at these times of ground feeding. So maybe they ground feed in more than one set of circumstances. On the January first sighting, mentioned below, there was a major freeze in place.


Dan Reiff
----- Original Message -----
From: notcalm at comcast.net
To: "Kevin Purcell" <kevinpurcell at pobox.com>
Cc: "Tweeters" <Tweeters at u.washington.edu>
Sent: Tuesday, January 11, 2011 11:00:48 PM
Subject: Re: [Tweeters] Re: Seattle Woodland Park Zoo Barred Owls


Kevin,


On the Mercer island CBC, our group was wowed to see the exact same behavior of a GC Kinglet as one of the first birds of the morning. Many were seen and one landed right at our feet and hopped and pecked- what a beauty. We were all delighted- stunned, really. I have never seen them do that. One person speculated that something had blow off the trees in the recent windstorm, which brought them to the ground. Have seen many on tree trunks, including yesterday, just outside my den window.
Always a nice, colorful surprise.


Dan Reiff
----- Original Message -----
From: "Kevin Purcell" <kevinpurcell at pobox.com>
To: "Kelsey Byers" <kjbyers at uw.edu>
Cc: "Kevin Purcell" <kevinpurcell at pobox.com>, tweeters at u.washington.edu
Sent: Tuesday, January 11, 2011 9:59:04 PM
Subject: Re: [Tweeters] Re: Seattle Woodland Park Zoo Barred Owls

On Jan 11, 2011, at 6:19 PM, Kelsey Byers wrote:

> Amusingly, while walking past the wolf exhibit today I saw two golden-crowned kinglets acting just like juncos on the path. Not two feet from me - and very calm! Unusual behavior for those little guys.

I've noticed this a lot over December and into January too.

I don't recall having seen them ground feeding like that before by GC Kinglets. Black-capped Chickadees too do the same thing. I do wonder what they're feeding on though. It can't be hidden larvae. Can it?

The other oddity is having to look twice at tree trunks when the "brown creepers" turn out to be GC Kinglets, Black-capped Chickadees or Bewick's Wrens.

I suspect this is just an observational issue on my part: it's Winter and I wasn't paying attention before.
--
Kevin Purcell (Seattle, WA)
kevinpurcell at pobox.com
http://kevinpurcell.posterous.com
http://twitter.com/kevinpurcell

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