Regulus regulus

Geographic Range

The goldcrest Regulus regulus is native to both the Palearctic region and the Oriental regions. This includes many countries in the Middle East, east and central Asia, India, and many parts of Europe. The breeding range for the goldcrest includes northern Europe and northern Asia. Specifically, it breeds in Norway, Sweden, Finland, southern Russia and northern China. Outside of breeding season, the goldcrests typically migrate just south of the breeding range into Spain, France, Poland, Nepal, southern China, and the Canary Islands.

• Biogeographic Regions
• palearctic palearctic
  • native native
• oriental oriental
  • native native

Habitat

Regulus regulus is a bird that and can be found in coniferous forests or other mixed woodland habitats. During the winter, the goldcrest is often found in winter-hedges, undergrowth and scrub-like underbrush. Due to its small size, the goldcrest is found closer to the ground in the brush to keep warmer. In the warmer seasons this bird is often found higher up in canopy and also can be found in gardens.

• Habitat Regions
• terrestrial terrestrial

• Terrestrial Biomes
• forest forest
• scrub forest scrub forest
• mountains mountains

Physical Description

The goldcrest is a relatively small bird with a finely shaped bill and a short tail. The goldcrest has an average basal metabolic rate of approximately 2.48 cm^3 oxygen/hr. This bird is about 9 centimeters long and weighs about 6 grams. Males generally weigh more and have longer lengths in the wingspan and bill. The wingspan is, on average, 14 centimeters long. Regulus regulus has a yellow or orange stripe centrally located on the crown. With a pale face and dark eyes, this bird can be distinguished by the yellow-colored stripe in the female and more of an orange-colored stripe in the male that is featured. Juvenile goldcrests lack the pattern on the crown that is seen in the adult birds. A relative of the goldcrest, the firecrest Regulus ignicapilla , has a distinctive eye stripe.

• Other Physical Features
• endothermic endothermic
• bilateral symmetry bilateral symmetry

• Sexual Dimorphism
• male larger
• sexes colored or patterned differently

Reproduction

Male goldcrests sing to attract the attention of female goldcrests and establish their territory. The males will display their brightly-colored crest to try and get the attention of a mate. The courtship usually begins in April or May and they mate monogamously for the season.

• Mating System
• monogamous monogamous

Goldcrests breed when food resources are the most abundant, usually in April and May. Goldcrests utilize internal fertilization. They can have 6-14 eggs per clutch. Birth mass has not been reported for this species. The females are also able to have two broods per season, with the potential of up to 20 offspring per breeding season. The breeding interval is once to twice yearly. The eggs are incubated for about 15 days and, once hatched, the young are fed for up to 22 days by both the male and female. The male and female goldcrests both reach sexual maturity around 1 year.

• Key Reproductive Features
• iteroparous iteroparous
• seasonal breeding seasonal breeding
• gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate)
• sexual sexual
• fertilization fertilization
• oviparous oviparous

Male goldcrests will bring food to the female and the young hatchlings, and from there, both parents feed the young. The newly-hatched birds are not very well-developed and depend on their parents for food. The male and the female both protect and provide for the hatchlings and fledglings until they are able to leave the nest. Male goldrests will also protect their territory around the nesting area while the young are still in the nest.

• Parental Investment
• altricial altricial
• male parental care male parental care
• female parental care female parental care
• pre-hatching/birth
  • provisioning
    • male
    • female
  • protecting
    • male
• pre-weaning/fledging
  • provisioning
    • male
    • female
  • protecting
    • male
• pre-independence
  • provisioning
    • male
    • female
  • protecting
    • male
• post-independence association with parents

Lifespan/Longevity

The longest recorded lifespan of a goldcrest in the wild is 7 years. The average lifespan for a goldcrest is about one to two years, shortly after it has reproduced. There is no recorded data for goldcrest lifespan in captivity.

Behavior

Regulus regulus is a motile, volant bird. It is very erratic in movements and is often hopping, flicking its tail, and twitching or fluttering around. This bird is usually solitary or it will live in a small community of about 8 birds and will migrate in small groups with no more that 12 birds.

During migration the birds that are found in more northern areas of the range will relocate south of the breeding range. The goldcrests in the southerns area do not migrate, like those in the northern ares.

• Key Behaviors
• flies
• glides
• motile motile
• migratory migratory
• territorial territorial

Home Range

Male goldcrests are territorial in their breeding area. Goldcrest population density is independent of the size of the forest patch and birds will travel several kilometers from the nesting area at a time. Home range and territory, however, have not been quantified.

Communication and Perception

Regulus regulus communicates primarily through acoustic means. The voice of the goldcrest is very high pitched and is commonly heard with a repeating rise and fall, ending with great flourish for its choruses. The voice of Regulus regulus is also identified to be trisyllabic. The call will generally sound like see-see-see, see-seesisyu-seesiyu-sweet. This bird can also visually see its environment as well as hear and taste the things surrounding it. The goldcrest will call most commonly when foraging, this means that it will be heard year round.

• Communication Channels
• acoustic acoustic
• chemical chemical

• Other Communication Modes
• choruses choruses

• Perception Channels
• visual visual
• tactile tactile
• acoustic acoustic
• chemical chemical

Food Habits

The goldcrest commonly forages by feeding in the trees on insects, spiders, caterpillars, worms, and other small insects. In the winter Regulus regulus can be found foraging with other birds like tits Poecile . The goldcrest is often skittish in movement when hunting for food and is known to store seeds for later. Primarily an insectivore, the goldcrest also eats the sap from trees and bits of leaves and other plant like material when foraging on the ground.

• Primary Diet
• carnivore carnivore
  • insectivore insectivore
  • eats non-insect arthropods
• herbivore herbivore
  • eats sap or other plant foods

• Animal Foods
• insects
• terrestrial non-insect arthropods
• terrestrial worms

• Plant Foods
• leaves
• sap or other plant fluids

• Foraging Behavior
• stores or caches food stores or caches food

Predation

Because goldcrests are under the cover of trees and foliage while foragaing, they are rarely subject to predation. Goldcrests use cryptic coloration to blend into their environment. The most common predators of the goldcrest are owls, such as the pygmy owl Glaucidium passerinum , and sparrow hawks Accipiter nisus .

• Anti-predator Adaptations
• cryptic cryptic

Ecosystem Roles

Regulus regulus plays a role in seed dispersal by caching seeds. The trematode Collyriclum faba is a common parasite in wild birds including Regulus regulus . This parasite can cause one to twenty-one cysts in the body and can be fatal to the bird. In Regulus regulus these cysts are generally found near the coccygeal gland.

• Ecosystem Impact
• disperses seeds

Economic Importance for Humans: Positive

There are no known positive economic effects of Regulus regulus on humans.

Economic Importance for Humans: Negative

There are no known adverse economic effects of Regulus regulus on humans.

Conservation Status

The goldcrest is not a threatened species and according to the IUCN red list the goldcrest is listed as "least concern." However, the populations of goldcrests are reported to be on decline. The goldcrest is not currently under any protective measures or on any conservation list.

Additional Links

Encyclopedia of Life

Contributors

Megan Collier (author), Radford University, Karen Powers (editor), Radford University, April Tingle (editor), Radford University, Emily Clark (editor), Radford University, Cari Mcgregor (editor), Radford University, Jacob Vaught (editor), Radford University, Tanya Dewey (editor), University of Michigan-Ann Arbor.

References

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