{"id":10598,"date":"2022-02-17T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-02-17T08:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lafayettepark.org\/staging_5\/?p=10598"},"modified":"2022-02-18T00:35:04","modified_gmt":"2022-02-18T00:35:04","slug":"mighty-mite","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lafayettepark.org\/staging_5\/mighty-mite\/","title":{"rendered":"MIGHTY MITE"},"content":{"rendered":"

BY KIERAN LINDSEY, PhD \u00a0<\/a><\/span><\/h4>\n

Big things come in small packages, we’re told… and if you’d like some evidence to support that theory, boy-howdy, have I got a potent little parcel for you!<\/h4>\n

Measuring 3-4″ (8-11 cm) from beak to tail-tip, and tipping the scale at 0.1-0.3 oz (4-8 g), less than 2 cents worth of copper, the Golden-Crowned Kinglet (Regulus satrapa<\/em>) gives every appearance of being a fitting illustration of fragility. One strong wind would surely blow this saffron-capped, round-bodied, short-winged, skinny-tailed wisp of gray and olive green feathers into the next county like a scrap of litter! And weathering a winter storm? Fuhgeddaboutit! This chick must surely live in a tropical paradise, sheltered like royalty from the harsh realities of life beyond the castle walls.<\/h4>\n

Don’t be so quick to judge a book by its cover!<\/h4>\n

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The GCK isn’t an equatorial resident after all \u2014 far from it. No, this feathered smidgen with a technicolor mohawk* never leaves North America, although some individuals do migrate from Canada and parts of Alaska to the lower 48 US states and into Mexico. This is no small feat, given their high metabolism and need to feed almost continuously during daylight hours.<\/h4>\n

Moreover, while their larger mammalian neighbors retreat during inclement winter weather to underground dens or above-ground structures with central heating, Golden-Crowned Kinglets spend those long, frigid nights sleeping beneath the stars, alone or convening with their compatriots to consolidate body heat, even where overnight temperatures drop below -40\u00b0F.\u00a0 Still not impressed?\u00a0 Keep in mind that smaller creatures lose heat more quickly than larger critters due to their higher surface-area-to-volume ratio.<\/h4>\n

Although most GCKs are considered medium-range migrants and don’t have summer and winter homes in different hemispheres, they do mark the seasonal shifts with a change of scenery. During the summer breeding season they are exceedingly difficult to spot, spending most of their time in the far upper reaches of tall trees, especially spruce and firs.\u00a0 For this reason, birders depend on the male’s distinctive song to guide their binoculars. Consisting of up to 14 rising tsee<\/em> notes that increase in tempo over about 3 seconds, it ends in a warble at least an octave lower. Sadly, though, this high-pitched call is often one of the first bird songs to become imperceptible to human ears as age-related hearing loss erodes our ability to hear sounds in the upper ranges.<\/h4>\n