The goldcrest (Regulus regulus) and the firecrest Regulus ignicapilla) are, to all intents and purposes, identical in size. The firecrest can however be distinguished from its more common relative by its "bronze shoulders and strong face pattern".
Sizes and weights:
| Length | Wingspan | Weight | ||||
| cm | inches | cm | inches | grams | ounces | |
| Goldcrest | 8.5 to 9.5 | 3.3 to 3.7 | 13.5 to 15.5 | 5.3 to 6.1 | 4.5 to 7.0 | 0.16 to 0.25 |
| Firecrest | 9.0 | 3.5 | 13 to 16 | 5.1 to 6.3 | 4.0 to 7.0 | 0.14 to 0.25 |
According to Wikipedia, "The common firecrest expanded its range in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries ... In Britain, it had only been recorded a handful of times by 1839, but first bred in 1962, and is now widespread as a breeding bird in much of southern England."
© Haydn Thompson 2023