smile now

feeling really yukkie n blue, I went for a walk in the woods, hoping it was going to somehow lift my spirits. It was coooold. But look what I found: chickadee!


Information from Wikipedia: [link]
The Black-capped Chickadee is a small, common songbird. Males are larger. Their tail is normally primarily slate-gray but has been observed in central New Jersey in 2008 to be completely white and seemingly longer and more prominent. Their breeding habitat is normally woods in Canada and northern US states.
On cold winter nights, these birds reduce their body temperature by up to 10-12 °C to conserve energy.
The Black-capped Chickadee nests in a hole in a tree; the pair excavates the nest, using a natural cavity or sometimes an old woodpecker nest. This Chickadee will also nest in a nesting box.

Chickadees hop along tree branches searching for food, sometimes hanging upside down or hovering; they may make short flights to catch insects in the air. Insects form a large part of their diet, especially in summer; seeds and berries become important in winter. Black oil sunflower seeds are quickly taken from an urban bird feeder.
During the fall migration and winter, chickadees often flock together. Many other species of birds – including titmice, nuthatches, and warblers – can often be found foraging in these flocks. Mixed flocks stay together because the chickadees call out whenever they find a good source of food. This calling-out forms cohesion for the group, allowing the other birds to find food more efficiently.

The vocalizations of the Black-capped Chickadees are highly complex (Ficken et al., 1978). 13 distinct types of vocalizations have been classified, many of which are complex and can communicate different types of information. The most familiar call is the familiar chick-a-dee-dee-dee which gave this bird its name. Its song is fee-bee-fee-bay. Go to the Wikepedia page to hear a short sample>

(The Black-capped and Carolina chickadees are extremely similar visually, but distinguishable by subtle differences. They were formerly thought to be easily distinguished by call, but the two species often learn each others vocalizations where their ranges overlap. A bird located near the zone of overlap that sings both songs, or sings "odd-sounding" songs, cannot be positively identified in the field[1]. Their point of overlap is a narrow band that runs along the east-central United States. Very similar to the Black-capped Chickadee, the Carolina Chickadee is best told from it by the slightly browner wing with the greater coverts brown (not whitish fringed) and the white fringing on the secondary feathers slightly less conspicuous; the tail is also slightly shorter and more square-ended. The calls and song also differ subtly to an experienced ear: the Carolina Chickadee's chick-a-dee call is faster and higher pitched than that of the Black-Capped Chickadee, and the Carolina chickadee has a four note fee-bee-fee-bay song, whereas the Black-capped omits the high notes. Identification is very difficult even with an excellent view.)