Date: 11/3/26 12:26 pm From: Carol Pecot <carol.pecot...> Subject: Re: [MBBIRDS] Ruby-crowned Kinglet breeding in Santa Cruz county?
I needed to wait until my acquaintance returned from a weekend trip to ask her about the crest again. Short version: Western Flycatcher :-) Longer version is below.
I told her there was a lot of interest in the bird because that would be very unusual, as I had mentioned when we first talked. Before I even asked her about the crest, she said she had been thinking about it and was not sure that she had seen the crest after all. I am not sure why she seemed so definitive about it, repeatedly, when we first talked.
I suspect this is because although she is not a birdwatcher, she had spent a lot of time trying to identify it, and got very close according to the looks. And then, since she had known it should have a ruby crest, she sort of talked herself into seeing a ruby crest once or twice...
I remember once reading a humorous book about birdwatching. The author wryly commented that in his first couple of years birdwatching, bird book in hand, he had confidently and easily identified a very large number of birds. This including every… single... Empidonax flycatcher! As time went on and he gained experience with individual differences, color and marking changes in different light, seasonal changes, etc. the pace and ease of ID slowed, and the accuracy increased. (I think he may have crossed a few of the Empidonax flycatchers off of his list as well)
So, end result, Western Flycatcher nesting in a normal Western Flycatcher place, with a well-flattened “don’t look at me” head shape. Thanks to all!
This also leads me to a slightly altered question: Does anyone know if previous offspring stay as helpers with Western flycatchers? I don’t think she imagined the pair of similar looking birds that accompanied the nesting female most of the time, hanging out and waiting when she was on the nest, and leaving with her when she left.
Carol
> On Oct 29, 2026, at 6:25 AM, liammsf <liammsf...> wrote:
>
> I concur with the comments of Dominik and Kent, the appearance of the bird (particularly the larger, wide-set bill) and the chosen nest site, fits Western Flycatcher far better than either kinglet or Hutton's Vireo.
>
> Liam
>
> On Thu, Oct 29, 2026, 6:07 AM Kent Johnson <kentjohnson...> <mailto:<kentjohnson...>> wrote:
>> Hi Carol,
>> I cannot account for your friend's saying it had a ruby crown, but the bird does not have the bill of a vireo or the wing of a kinglet. The nest is also very unlike that of a vireo or kinglet. It all does look like a Western Flycatcher.
>> Cheers, Kent Johnson
>> From: <mbbirds...> <mailto:<mbbirds...> <mbbirds...> <mailto:<mbbirds...>> on behalf of Carol Pecot <carol.pecot...> <mailto:<carol.pecot...>> >> Sent: Thursday, October 29, 2026 3:03 AM
>> To: <dominikmosur...> <mailto:<dominikmosur...> <dominikmosur...> <mailto:<dominikmosur...>> >> Cc: MBBirds <mbbirds...> <mailto:<mbbirds...>> >> Subject: Re: [MBBIRDS] Ruby-crowned Kinglet breeding in Santa Cruz county?
>>
>> Hi Dominik,
>> Are you a night owl too? I had just sent out some comments about other possible birds to my email, and then saw your comment before I shut the computer down.
>>
>> Totally agree that it is also similar to a Western Flycatcher in looks and nest site (and timing), but the beak is very black, with no sign of a crest (which can be hidden, but I’ve not seen it hidden that much). And, of course, the person I was talking to said that she occasionally saw the ruby crown. I asked her 3 separate times, just to make sure, but I will be going back and doing that yet again! When I asked her if the bird tended to move around very quickly, she instantly agreed. I will definitely be talking to her again.
>>
>> Carol
>>
>>> On Oct 29, 2026, at 2:42 AM, <dominikmosur...> <mailto:<dominikmosur...> wrote:
>>>
>>> Hi Carol,
>>>
>>> This looks like a Western Flycatcher. They often build nests on man made structures like this.
>>>
>>> d
>>> Sent from my iPhone
>>>
>>>> On Oct 29, 2026, at 02:14, Carol Pecot <carol.pecot...> <mailto:<carol.pecot...>> wrote:
>>>>
>>>> Thanks Liam, and also thanks to many others who responded.
>>>> In answer to some of the comments or questions:
>>>> -I’m definitely familiar with the Ruby-crowned Kinglets being here in the non-breeding season - I look forward to hearing the old typewriter sounds of their call every fall, and always try to observe the very hard to see yellowish feet (usually unsuccessfully, because they move so quickly).
>>>> -I really perked up when she said it was nesting, because I thought that they did not nest around here. After I confirmed that the records and range maps did NOT list them breeding here, I sent out the email.
>>>> -in recent years, it seems like they sometimes stay longer than I expect, but I don’t think I have recorded any dates
>>>> -I’m about 4 miles downhill (Santa Cruz side) from the Summit Road at elevation ~ 1,100 ft, and I am pretty sure that the person I was talking about is local to me, perhaps a bit closer to the Summit Road - I’ll ask her where the pictures were taken.
>>>> -below are the pictures that she shared with me. She also had a silhouette picture of one of the other birds that would hang out nearby, but I didn’t ask for that one. She did not have a picture of it showing its ruby crest, but said she had seen it a couple of times, but most of the time it was hidden.
>>>>
>>>> Comments about ID from the pictures?
>>>>
>>>> Thanks, Carol Pecot
>>>>
>>>> <image000000.jpeg>
>>>>
>>>> <image000000.jpeg>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Below is the date stamp of the first picture
>>>> <image000000.jpeg>
>>>>
>>>> Below is the date stamp for the second picture
>>>> <image000001.jpeg>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>> On Oct 28, 2026, at 7:18 PM, liammsf <liammsf...> <mailto:<liammsf...>> wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>> Ruby-crowned Kinglets are expected region-wide currently, during the non breeding season. They aren’t known to breed in or near the Santa Cruz Mountains; furthermore there are no eBird records of the species in June or July in Santa Cruz County.
>>>>>
>>>>> If there are photos, those would be good to include. I’m not aware of any rules prohibiting photo attachments to the email list.
>>>>>
>>>>> Liam Murphy
>>>>>
>>>>>> On Oct 28, 2026, at 7:01 PM, donna cowan <donnicus44...> <mailto:<donnicus44...>> wrote:
>>>>>>
>>>>>> They breed and nest in the summer, usually July and August
>>>>>>
>>>>>> On Wed, Oct 28, 2026, 6:49 PM 'Louise West' via mbbirds <mbbirds...> <mailto:<mbbirds...>> wrote:
>>>>>> I saw and photographed one at Roaring Camp yesterday, but have no clue if it’s breeding. I got one badly blurred image with the crown showing, but the sharp shots (alas) don’t show the red crown.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Louise W
>>>>>> Felton
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Sent from my iPhone
>>>>>>
>>>>>> > On Oct 28, 2026, at 6:37 PM, Carol Pecot <carol.pecot...> <mailto:<carol.pecot...>> wrote:
>>>>>> >
>>>>>> > Hi all,
>>>>>> >
>>>>>> > Are there any records or sightings of Ruby-crowned Kinglets breeding in the Santa Cruz mountains?
>>>>>> >
>>>>>> > In my garden today I was talking with a non-birder, and I thought I saw a Ruby-crowned Kinglet flitting by. I finally saw enough to id, including the call, and said “Oh, it’s a Ruby-crowned Kinglet”. The person I was talking to said “that’s what I thought it was”, which seemed weird given she was not a birder. She explained that it was one of the few birds she knew because one had nested outside of her room and she got lots of good looks, and even saw the ruby crown a few times. She showed me a June 29 picture of the bird sitting on the nest, and a July 3 pic of the babies.
>>>>>> >
>>>>>> > She also reported some interesting behavior. When the female was sitting on the nest, there were two adult kinglets who would perch nearby, waiting. When she arrived, they would also arrive, and when she left, they left. Do kinglets have a history of “helpers” from prior broods?
>>>>>> >
>>>>>> > Does anyone have information on Ruby-crowned Kinglets breeding in the mountains here?
>>>>>> >
>>>>>> > Thanks, Carol Pecot
>>>>>> >
>>>>>> > PS the picture sure looks like a Ruby-crowned Kinglet sitting on the nest (not a Hutton’s Vireo), and I have permission to share it. However, I must confess that I know how to attach a picture to an email, but I think we are not supposed to do that? I don’t know how to set it up as a link….. I’ll try to figure that out if anyone wants to see the pic.
>>>>>> >
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