A pair of Golden-crowned Kinglets came to visit the tree outside my window.
The male was showing some autumnal exuberance, chasing the female around
incessantly. Every time he landed next to her, he flashed his orange crown.
When she moved away, his crown dropped, reverting back to its normal yellow
color. When he jumped on to her branch, the bright orange was again
displayed. This went on for a couple of minutes until the female jetted
away. There may have been a raptor fly by, or just an ominous shadow, but
the male froze to his perch, not moving for a full 2 minutes. When was the
last time you saw a motionless kinglet? Slowly, he began to turn his head,
looking around. For the next few minutes, he stayed on the perch, just
moving his head, but during that time, he would raise and lower his crown,
almost like breathing, with the color changing accordingly from the normal
yellow to a darker yellow-orange. Moments later, another male came in to
the same tree, this one with a crown as bright an orange-red as I have
seen. The first bird didn't budge but did flash a little color, though not
as bright as the interloper, who continued to dance about the stationary
bird. Whether the first guy was showing indifference or intimidation, one
can only guess. Eventually, the two of them parted ways, darting off in
opposite directions, leaving the drama behind.

Scott Ramos
Seattle