On Monday, I was having a nice little portrait session with a male Ruby-crowned Kinglet (Regulus calendula) at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, but I wanted more than just a glimpse of his “ruby crown.” Amazingly, he bowed in my direction to make my wish come true.
For those of you who may not be familiar with kinglets, they are tiny birds that are even smaller than chickadees. During this past fall, I became aware that they spend their winters in my area and I have been hunting them ever since. Both the Ruby-crowned Kinglet and the Golden-crowned Kinglet are energetic and elusive and rarely sit still long enough for me to get a shot. When it comes to the “ruby crown,” only the male has it and it is only occasionally visible. That is why I was ecstatic to be able to get such a clear shot of the ruby crown of this kinglet.
Wishes do come true—maybe a ruby crown is better than ruby slippers.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
You’ve introduced me to a new bird. It’s a real wee cutie.
Wonderful captures, Mike! I am well familiar with this energetic bird and have waited in vain many times hoping to see that full crown. They are fun to watch, zip, zip, zip. Very nice!
Excellent shot of the crown, Mike. I was beginning to wonder…
Quite remarkable, Mike!
Benjamin is quite smitten with this little bird and his “red hat”! He was so intrigued that we went searching Wikipedia for more information. I am so pleased that he has gotten interested by your wonderful posts. Your beautiful photos are a gift that he and I share. Thank-you!
Enchanting Mike! I love your story and photo 🙂
I wonder if the bird’s friends call him/her Red?
🙂 In this case it’s a male–I think they call him Little Red.
That last photo is nothing short of a miracle and an extremely astute and patient skilled photographer. Wow. Catching that ruby spot that only occurs in good light and so rarely is one of my favorite past times. Thanks so much, Mike.