Black Capped Chickadees

By:Emma Weiss

Becca PoloskyLexus Thorn

Alexis McMurray

“Home Tweet Home”The Black capped chickadee is found mostly in North America. They live in the woody areas. They are named after the black capped head they have. They also have a grey and white belly. The beak is short with a tweezer-shape that helps it to pick up seeds and tiny insects. They are also named after the way they sing. The way they sing is chick-a-deedee-dee. They sing their name!

Eating Time!Black capped chickadees are most likely to eat caterpillars, spiders and sunflower seeds. In the summer they eat mostly insects and in the winter they eat mostly fruit and seeds. To get food they hop around to different branches. They collect food on top of twigs and the bottoms of leaves. In the fall they store the seeds in tree bark and other hiding places in the forests . They will eat the seeds later on in the winter.

MigrationDid you know that black capped chickadees are not true migrating birds? They only move a couple of miles when it is needed. In the forest during winter they may run out of food so they will need to move to a different spot and stay there until spring comes. When spring comes they will go back to their original spot.

NestingBlack capped chickadees nest in the late winter. The female is in charge of finding a place to have the nest. They need a place that has enough food and water . They like to find rotten branches with holes that are already made and unoccupied! If they are having trouble finding a hole they will carve their own. These kinds of birds are called primary cavity nesters. The female creates her nest by pulling together bark and leaves. She will also then use feathers or animal fur to line her nest.

Chickadees MatingIf the male fails to win her heart then she will easily find another lover. Every day the males are challenged to a song singing contest to see who wins the females heart. Every male has only 1 song to sing and they can’t sing anything else. Some competitions last for several min. The female will listen to the whole song. Even during this the female will likely cheat. Even though chickadee partners may stay together for years they still have a system of divorce. Within 24 hours they kick the partner out and have a new one! That is why the country song your cheatin’ heart is perfect for the female chickadee! The males will compete a female is not happy with a mate she will sneak out at dawn to go out with another male. In social sense long term partners remain mated. The problem of extra mating is that some chicks get fathered by other male chickadees. So basically if she isn’t impressed with the male’s song she will find another male. The female will listen to the whole song.

Baby Fledglings The eggs will be white with brown or red specks. The eggs will hatch within 10-12 days. The babies will be called fledglings. Chickadee fledglings are altricial , which means that they are born without any feathers.

Fledglings Growing UpBoth chickadee parents are responsible for taking care of the young fledglings. The fledglings will leave their nest 2-3 weeks after birth but the parents will continue feeding them for the next 2-3 weeks. By the end of 2 weeks after their birth they will learn how to fly.

Here are some FUN FACTS about the Black Capped Chickadee

• They can eat upside down• They are not true migrates

• There is no difference between the 2 sexes• They are Massachusetts state bird officially on

March 21st 1941

ConclusionIn conclusion we would like to say that we chose this bird because it was common around our school’s area and easily viewed. Even though we have learned all this information about the black capped chickadee we would like to learn more and share this with the rest of the our school. We also think that it would be exciting to watch them up close and see their life style and all the stages of their life!