Bushtit Psaltriparus minimus is maybe my favorite local tiny bird. Check out the species scientific name, minimus even calls out its tiny size. At 10.2 cm (almost half of the length is the thin tail) and 5.7 grams it is pretty tiny. Think of 5 grams as a teaspoon of water. These guys tend to flock in winter, are hyperactive and are as often heard as seen. They make their nests in a really cool way. A platform of spider webs is constructed on a fork of branches. One of the pair sits on the platform, stretching it into a sac, which is added to by the other of the pair until a dangling sac-like nest is made.
This Wine-throated Hummingbird was photographed in Guatemala a few years ago. It is an extremely tiny bird, These very tiny hummingbirds can weigh as little as 2 grams, making them one of the most diminutive birds in the world. The males of this species gather in what is called a "lek" where they display to attract a female.
In Washington we have several more year-around residents that fit well into the "small birds" category including:
Chestnut-backed Chickadee Poecile rufescens (11.9 cm, 8.5 grams) is a Pacific Northwest specialty.
Black-capped Chickadee Poecile atricapillus (513.5 cm, 11.3 gm) is more widespread across much of the U.S.
Ruby-crowned Kinglet Corthylio calendula (10.4cm. , 6.5 gm) is a hyperactive wing-flitting tiny bird that breeds in the mountains and comes to lower elevation in winter.
Golcen-crowned Kinglet Regulus satrapa (9.9cm, 5.7 gm) is tough to see most days as it flits around high in the fir trees.
Thanks to good optics and zoom lenses we get to enjoy these tiny birds.
Good birding.
