Fareed Mohmed ← The Indian List

Bird Photography · The Indian List

Kinglets

1 of 1 species photographed

One species. Goldcrest is the only kinglet recorded in India, and it's also one of the smallest birds in the country — a tiny, constantly active olive-green bird of conifer forest, told at a glance by the bold black-bordered stripe of colour running down the centre of the crown. It forages high and fast through conifer needles, gleaning insects, and rarely stays still long enough for an easy photograph.

1Species in India
1Photographed
Conifer forestWhere it lives
Tiny and constant motionHow it forages
High in the canopyWhere to look

The species

Goldcrest

Regulus regulus1 frame
Status
Resident, with some altitudinal movement
Range
The Himalaya, mainly at higher elevations in conifer forest
Habitat
Conifer forest, foraging high in the canopy
IUCN
Least Concern

A tiny, plump, olive-green bird with a bold black-bordered orange-yellow stripe down the centre of the crown and a plain pale face with a large dark eye. Constantly active, gleaning insects from conifer needles high in the canopy, often in the company of tit and warbler flocks. Among the smallest birds recorded in India.

FM0248
Mar 2024Eaglenest Pass, West Kameng, Arunachal PradeshPerched among conifer needles, black-bordered golden crown stripe lit warm.

Photographs by Fareed Mohmed