I have also seen them do this in nice weather, although in those cases I
assumed it was for a good feeding opportunity
Sent from Gmail Mobile
On Mon, Jan 15, 2024 at 9:19 AM Dennis Paulson <
dennispaulson at comcast.net>
wrote:
>
Eric,
>
>
It has long been noticed that Golden-crowned Kinglets come down to the
>
ground to forage in really adverse weather conditions, so we can add
>
Ruby-crowned to that list as well.
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Be sure to let us know if anyone sees a Brown Creeper doing this!
>
>
Dennis Paulson
>
Seattle
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>
On Jan 14, 2024, at 9:40 PM, Eric Ellingson <esellingson at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>
Most Ruby-crowned Kinglets I've seen are usually quickly going about in
>
bushes and trees, sometimes way high up, other times closer to eye level.
>
However, even at eye level, they can be difficult birds to get a photo of.
>
Also, the scarlet crown is not always seen on the males or if seen just as
>
a red flash.
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So it was fascinating to see two of these hopping along the ground on the
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trail at Point Whitehorn. They seemed oblivious to us standing in the
>
middle of the path. They would come toward us passing by our feet and
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continuing along the path.
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The scarlet on the head was very visible but not raised as when agitated.
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This and the behavior of feeding and hopping along on the ground are not
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the norm. My guess about this ground-level feeding is that with the high
>
winds and freezing weather (into single digits) their food of insects was
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blown to the ground out of the shrubs and trees they would have been in.
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Who, knows? Also, maybe a way to conserve energy?
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>
Camera in hand, as usual, I could not pass up the opportunity. I took
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many shots and videos of them hopping and foraging. Often they would come
>
toward me getting too close for my camera to focus on them. If I had a
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small insect in my hand I'm guessing they would have hopped into my had to
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eat it.
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>
The 29-second video is comprised of some close-ups showing the scarlet
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crown and foraging successes. Watch it here: https://flic.kr/p/2pswNca
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Enjoy.
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What unusual behaviors have you seen during this very cold and windy past
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few days?
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>
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Eric Ellingson
>
>
360-820-6396
>
esellingson at gmail.com
>
https://www.flickr.com/photos/ericellingson/
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>
>
>
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