Ruby-crowned and Golden-crowned Kinglets, Laudholm Farms, Wells Maine

It was a dark and somewhat dreary day yesterday as a cold front rolled in from the west, and the high temperature for the day was predicted at 9AM. I got out early on my eBike, down along the coast to Laudholm Farms. The temperature was dropping fast, but, after much debate with myself, I decided to walk the loop of trails around the edge of the Farms to see if I could see any birds or if the Wood Frogs were active in the vernal pools. I was still in the aisle of trees at the head of the trail, before the miniature bog, when I caught sight of something small and birdy flicking though the bushes over the tiny stream on the left along the path. On closer inspection it was a Ruby-crowned Kinglet, my first of the year in Maine. I don’t see them often in Maine at all, so I was delighted to follow it as it worked its way down the stream and on either side of the path. It was feeding very actively and would not sit still for more than a single second on any one perch. I was trying to frame it at 600mm and it was relatively close, not an easy combination, but I finally managed a few record shots. Then another mile on, in the woods by the silent vernal pool (no frogs) I spotted what I took to be another Ruby-crowned Kinglet working the low undergrowth. Again, on closer inspection, it turned out to be a Golden-crowed Kinglet. It was just as busy, and even harder to catch in a 600mm field of view. If anything, I see fewer Golden-crowned Kinglets here in Southern Maine than I do Ruby-crowned. Both are more common on my summer trips north, and I have seen them frequently in the forests of Acadia National Park…but not around home in Kennebunk and Wells. I only saw the two, and one each, Ruby and Golden. A wonderful treat! Sony RX10iv at 600mm. Program mode with Minimum Shutter Speed ISO set at 1/500th. f4 @ 1/500th @ ISO 400 and 640. Processed in Polarr and Apple Photos.