on the belly, the throat and breast
spotted with black.

A yellowish eye-ring, like the creamy color of the breast.

A Summer Citizen of the mountains of the northern United States.

A Tree Trapper and Ground Gleaner.

CHAPTER X

PEEPERS AND CREEPERS

THE GOLDEN-CROWNED KINGLET

"We have been looking at some of the larger song birds; now try the
sharpness of your eyes by finding a tiny little fellow--a veritable
midget, who belongs to the guild of Tree Trappers. He is usually intent
upon his work, continually hopping and peeping among little branches and
twigs, and thinks it would be time wasted if he stayed still long enough
to give you a chance to look at him. He is so small that there are very
few North American birds to compare with him in littleness. The
Hummingbird, is smaller still, and the Winter Wren measures no more,
only he is chunkier. But what of that? This Kinglet is as hardy and
vigorous as the biggest Hawk or Owl. His body is padded with a thick
feather overcoat that enables him to stay all winter, if he chooses, in
all but the most northern States.

[Illustration: Golden-crowned Kinglet.]

"Small as he is, however, every one knows him, for he disports himself
at some time of the year in the North, South, East, and West. If you see
a tiny bird, darting quick as a mouse in and out among the budded twigs
of fruit trees in early spring, now and then showing a black stripe and
a little gleam of red or yellow on its head, it is this Kinglet. If you
see such a pygmy again in autumn, exploring the bare twigs, it is this
Kinglet. When light snow is first powdering the spruces and bending the
delicate hemlock branches, dusky shapes flit out of the green cover. Are
they dry leaves blown about by the gust? No, leaves do not climb about
in the face of the wind, or pry and peep into every cone crevice, crying
'twe-zee, twe-zee, twe-zee!' They are not leaves, but a flock of
Kinglets forcing the bark crevices to yield them a breakfast of the
insects which had put themselves comfortably to bed for the winter.
Think of the work that these birds do, who not only fight the insect
army in summer, but in sleet and snow are as busy as ever destroying the
eggs that would turn in another season to worms and eat the orchards!

"Though the Golden-crowned Kinglets rove about in flocks a great part of
the year, they are extremely private in the nesting season. They go to
northern and high places to hide their h