Outlines for Scout Workers—XVIII · Improvement Era

Outlines for Scout Workers By Delbert W. Parratt, B. S. XVIII — Ruby-Crowned Kinglet Do you ne'er think what wondrous beings these? Do you ne'er think who made them, and who taught The dialect they speak, where melodies Alone are the interpreters of thought? — Longfellow.

Why is the ruby-crowned kinglet so named?
Where does it spend the winter? The summer?
He is said to be a nervous little fellow. Why?
Contrast the male and female kinglet in size, color, and markings and tell why the differences.
Tell of the ruby-crowned kinglet's song.
Contrast the winter and summer flocking habits of these birds.
Tell when, where, and of what the nests are made.
How many and of what color are the eggs?
Upon what do these birds feed?

Should   they   be   protected?-       Give   at   least   two   reasons   for   your

answer. Handy Material I know a nimble little bird, So tiny and so gay, With ruby crown upon his head And back of olive gray; He flits and twists with no concern, This lively acrobat. Now who of you his name discern? Speak up and tell me that. — Guessing Game. Birds having crest feathers are said to wear crowns and some, for this reason, are referred to as kings. The one, for example, which catches fish and wears a crest or crown is com- monly known as the kingfisher and, likewise, the beautiful crowned flycatchers are usually described as kingbirds. The

OUTLINES FOR SCOUT WORKERS 701 little fellow under consideration has a crown and is, therefore, rightly qualified to bear the royal title, but owing to his diminu- tive size he is more appropriately called a kinglet. His attrac- tive crown feathers, somewhat concealed, are of rich crimson, suggestive of a ruby, and in consequence the little king is fitting- ly dubbed Ruby-Crowned Kinglet. This feathered midget frequents most of the United States and Canada. His migratory range is much like that of the slate-colored junco, but covers a greater area. East of the Rocky Mountains, he habitually summers in southern Canada and win- ters southward to the Gulf of Mexico and even to Guatemala. In the west his migrations are much more limited. While he is found quite generally throughout the Rocky Mountains, as far north as Alaska, his change from summer to winter homes is in reality not very great. Ordinarily, in these regions, he breeds in high mountain altitudes where climatic conditions are cool and otherwise favorable. His winters are spent in the lower valleys and along the sea coast, where storms are less severe and where food may be had in greater quantities. Locally, he flocks in considerable numbers during warm, mid-summer months in the higher, brisking recesses of our Wasatch range, and during winter flits about in brushes and trees of our and other near-by valleys. During colder months the pert little fellows are seen, singly or in groups of not more than two or three, nervously skipping from limb to limb in such an active manner that it is usually quite difficult to get a satisfactory look at them. However, patient, "watchful waiting" will nearly always award the inter- ested observer. The little, chattering acrobats will sooner or later reveal their identity. As with most other birds, the male kinglet is somewhat larger than the female and his colorings brighter, and markings more pronounced. He measures from four to four and one- half inches in length and is thus among the smallest birds living in or visiting our valley. A quiet, grayish olive mantles his upper parts and blends to a lighter greenish cast on the rump. This affords a pleasing background for the showy, ruby crown- feathers adorning his pert head. Dusky gray covers both wing and tail feathers, but this is enlivened by dainty streaks of buff along their edges, and each wing shows two cheering white bars in contrast with this somber gray. A narrow white ring par- tially encircles each eye and a dirty-white covers the under parts of his tiny body. Females as well as immature males are lacking the char- acteristic ruby crown. This is a mark of beauty used to win attentions from coveted females during mating season, and in consequence, of course, has no place upon the less concerned

702 IMPROVEMENT ERA 'iady and boy birds." In addition to showing his usually con- cealed "hat feathers," the exuberant male during this anxious season resorts to song to ingratiate himself into the good graces of his desired female. And what a sweet, modulated song it is! You wonder how such volume of ringing melody can come from such a tiny throat! "Its exquisite vocalization defies descrip- tion." In speaking of this remarkable lark and canary-like little musician, Leander Keyser writes: "Beginning with exceedingly fine whistle, which could not be heard far away, he descanted in sounds that it is impossible to convey in syllables. The best literation of his song that I was able to make was the following: Tse-e-ek, tse-e-ek, tse-e-e-ek, cholly-cholly-cholly, che-che-che, pur-tie, pur-tie, pur-tie! the purtie accented strongly on the last syllable, and the whole performance closing with an inter- rogative inflection." Thus with resonant song our cheer-giving, little friends take leave for cool mountain retreats to engage in the serious duties of building nests and rearing little ones. They are seldom con- tent to remain in altitudes of less than eight thousand feet and almost never go beyond the upper limits of tree growth. As a rule, their partly prehensil nests are built at the ends of branches or tops of evergreen trees from ten to thirty feet above ground. They are neat and compact, made of bark fibers, moss, and the like, and lined with hair or feathers. The delicate eggs, from five to nine in number, are whitish or buffy and usually spotted with light brown around the larger ends. It is indeed interesting to watch these busy little kings nimbly peering and prying into nooks and corners of various trees examining for hidden insects, eggs, and larvae. Often one sees them fluttering, like humming birds, up and down or along limbs minutely scanning in quest of scanty food. According to the United States Department of Agriculture, these cheery, acro- batic wanderers are of inestimable value to orchardists. In re- ferring to the good accomplished by the ruby-crowned kinglet, a government bulletin issued in 1913 said: "Three-fourths of its food consists of wasps, bugs, and flies. Beetles are the only other item of importance (12 per cent). The bugs eaten by the kinglet are mostly small, but, happily, they are the most harmful kinds. Treehoppers, leafhoppers, and jumping plant lice are pests and often do great harm to trees and smaller plants, while plant lice and scale insects are the worst scourges of the fruit grower — in fact, the prevalence of the latter has almost arisen to the magnitude of a national peril. It is these small and seemingly insignificant birds that most successfully attack and hold in these insidious foes of horticulture."

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Outlines for Scout Workers, XVIII