General

Golden-crowned Kinglet: Very small, warbler-like bird with olive-green to gray upperparts and pale breast. Head has bright orange crown patch bordered with yellow and black, white eyebrows and black bill. Tail is short and wings have two bars. Female and juvenile are similar but have yellow crowns bordered with black.

Range and Habitat

Golden-crowned Kinglet: Common from southern Alaska across central Canada and southeast to the Carolinas; breeds in the northern parts of its range and spends winters south throughout much of the U.S. to Florida and the Gulf coast. Preferred habitats include dense conifer forests; also found in deciduous and mixed forests.

Breeding and Nesting

Golden-crowned Kinglet: Five to eleven creamy white eggs, splotched brown or gray, are laid in a nest made of lichens and moss, lined with bark chips, rootlets and feathers, and built on a conifer branch from 30 to 60 feet above the ground. Incubation ranges from 14 to 15 days and is carried out by the female.

Foraging and Feeding

Golden-crowned Kinglet: Eats mainly insects, insect eggs, and seeds; drinks tree sap, sometimes from sapsucker drill wells; forages while moving among branches and leaves, often flicking its wings to flush prey.

Vocalization

Golden-crowned Kinglet: Song begins with three or four high-pitched "tsee-tsee-tsee" notes, followed by a rapid trill. Call is a series of three or four high-pitched "tsee" notes.

Similar Species

Golden-crowned Kinglet: Ruby-crowned Kinglet lacks white eyebrows and black eye-line.