The Black-capped Chickadee

The Black-capped Chickadee is a relatively small bird just four and a half to six inches in length. As its name indicates, it has a black cap and throat, but its cheeks are white. Its belly and chest are white, but its back is a solid gray. The Black-capped Chickadee's wings are gray as well but there may be some white edging. It's not real distinct and cannot always be seen. Its tail is relatively long for the size of the bird, and it is the same color as its wings but lacks the white edging.

The most brilliant singers are the birds of the woods, and the Black-capped Chickadee is no exception. It prefers the deciduous and mixed forests, and open woodlands, but can also be found in wetlands, thickets, parks and wooded backyards. They can be found in the northern part of the United States and the southern regions of Canada, as well as along the eastern seaboard as far south as Virginia. They are a non-migratory bird and are one of the few birds willing to tough out the winter in their northern habitat.

In February and March the focus shifts from surviving the winter to courtship and mating. Chattering loudly, they chase each other around and through the trees. The flock gradually breaks up into pairs. With the female in the lead, the pairs head out. Wherever the female goes, the male follows. The male will not tolerate any interlopers and aggressively defend his mate and the area around her. Once the nesting site is selected, usually a hole in the rotting wood of a dead stump, they work together to hollow it out and prepare the site. Once the site is prepared, the female builds the nest. The nest is built with soft fibers, plant down-anything soft.

Although both the male and female Chickadee look similar, the female's voice takes on a raspy quality as she prepares to lay her eggs. At this point the male takes on most of the food gathering responsibilities. He feeds his mate often as she crouches, shivering her wings as if she was a newly hatched baby bird.

With the nest ready, the female lays one egg a day until there is five to ten eggs. Clutches of six to eight are the most common. The eggs are white with a coating of fine dark spots and are incubated exclusively by the female.

The Black-capped Chickadee is a songbird and will sing throughout the year, but nothing can rival their songs during nesting season. Most mornings the male will serenade his mate with an early morning chorus. It has been known to last for up to an hour.

Listin to the song of the Black-capped Chickadee: Sound Byte: Black-capped Chickadee, National Park Service

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The Black-capped Chickadee spends most of its day feeding. It hops along branches poking at the bark. It will cling to trunks, clutch vertical limbs, and even hang upside down. It will do whatever it takes to examine every possible nook and cranny. Its next meal is just waiting to be discovered. 80 to 90 percent of the Chickadee's diet consists of weevils, lice, spiders and other insects during the breeding season, and about 50 percent during the winter.

When the food is plentiful the Chickadee will horde enough food to put a squirrel to shame. They will hide the little tidbits only to pull them out and hide them somewhere else. This behavior is particularly prevalent in late summer and early fall. They have been known to cache hundreds of food items in a single day, and remember where they hid it for up to 28 days.

Many northern birds cache food. They may not remember where they stashed all of it, but it provides meals for whatever bird stumbles across it. The winters are long and cold, food is often scarce. A cache of food can make all the difference in the world.

During the breeding season and the summer that follows, the Black-capped Chickadee's diet is prominently made up of insects. In the winter a feeding station that offers sunflower seeds and suit will catch their attention. Just remember that the birds will come to rely on the feeder. Don't start feeding them in the fall if you don't plan on continuing through the winter.

The Black-capped Chickadees establish a hierarchy or "pecking order" within their ranks early in the season. It's based on the degree of aggressiveness with the most aggressive reigning at the top. The higher ranking birds get the best nesting sites, first shot at food sources, and usually have the most surviving offspring. It's a Darwinian society but it works for them. According to the latest bird counts, their numbers are increasing.