Overview

Firecrest: Very small and active. Olive-grey above with green-yellow edging in wings and tail, and buff-white below. Head has red-yellow crown stripe with black border, broad white eyebrow, black line through eye, white crescent below eye, and short, black malar stripe. Two white wing bars.

Firecrest: Winter and migrant visitor recently established as a resident breeder. Can be seen year round in the southeastern most area of England. Winter grounds include the entire south of England. Some birds also seen on passage throughout England. Rare breeder in Wales. Scarce visitor to Scotland and Ireland. Found in coniferous and mixed forest areas.

Jean Roche Sound

Firecrest 2

• Title: Firecrest 2
• Description: Song of repeated notes ends with a trill.
• Recordist: Jean Roche
• Date Imported: "February 7, 2011"
• Location: uk

Firecrest 3

• Title: Firecrest 3
• Description: "Zit-zit-zit" call.
• Recordist: Jean Roche
• Date Imported: "February 7, 2011"
• Location: uk

Firecrest 4

• Title: Firecrest 4
• Description: Typical call.
• Recordist: Jean Roche
• Date Imported: "February 7, 2011"
• Location: uk

Voice Text

"zi-zi-zi-zi zi-zi-zi-zizizit", "ze-ze-zeep", "zeep"

• The Firecrest is possibly the species referred to in Greek legend and European folklore as the "king of the birds."
• In winter it is often found with tit flocks.
• This tiny, restless bird vies with the goldcrest for the title of the UK's smallest bird, and is the second smallest European bird.
• A group of kinglets has many collective nouns, including a "castle", "court", "princedom", and "throne room" of kinglets.

• Chiffchaff
• Goldcrest
• Pallas's Leaf Warbler
• Yellow-browed Warbler

Kinglets (Regulidae)

ORDER

The kinglets are one of the one hundred eighteen families of birds in the order PASSERIFORMES (pronounced pas-ser-i-FOR-meez); a large taxonomic order that also includes the pipits, the titmice, and the gnatcatchers.

FAMILY TAXONOMY

There are six species of kinglets in one genus in the Regulidae (pronounced reh-GYOO-lih-dee) family, a group of birds restricted to the forests of the Northern Hemisphere (IOC World Bird List, version 2.3).

EUROPE

In Europe, four species of kinglets in one genus occur. Most common among these are the Goldcrest and the Firecrest.

KNOWN FOR

Among the smallest of Passerines, the kinglets are known for their diminutive size and being very confiding and easy to approach.

PHYSICAL

Members of the Regulidae are very small birds with medium length tails, longish wings, medium length, thin legs with strong feet for perching, and a rounded head with a short, thin, pointed bill.

COLORATION

European species have dull olive upperparts, and grey or whitish underparts with yellowish edging to the feathers of the wings. They also have black in the wings, in the tail, and black markings on the face. All members of this family have one or two white wing bars, white markings on the face, and distinctive patches of bright orange, yellow, or red on the crown.

GEOGRAPHIC HABITAT

The Goldcrest and Firecrest are forest birds that can be found in much of the continent. Although the Goldcrest prefers coniferous habitats and the Firecrest is more frequent in deciduous woods, both can be found in either habitat as well as scrubby vegetation during the winter. The Madeira Firecrest is endemic to that archipelago, while the Ruby-crowned Kinglet is a vagrant species to Iceland from North America.

MIGRATION

The two most common European members of the Regulidae are short distance migrants to southern Europe and northern Africa.

HABITS

The kinglets do not nest in colonies but typically flock together with other kinglets and with other small birds outside of the breeding season. These arboreal birds forage for small arthropods in trees and bushes by gleaning them off of the vegetation while perched as well as picking them off of the vegetation while hovering.

CONSERVATION

None of the Regulidae in Europe are considered a threatened species.

INTERESTING FACTS

The Goldcrest has the distinction of being the smallest bird species in Europe. Its small size is an advantage in terms of survival as a species; since each individual requires less food and habitat compared to larger birds, Goldcrests can maintain a large population size within a fairly small area.

Artist

Michael Oberhofer