January 25 That Loveable Bird

If anyone needs a friend this winter, set up a bird feeder outside your window and wait a few hours. You are likely to see the black-capped chickadee (Poecile atricapillus) the same day. These feisty birds seem to enjoy themselves on a snowy morning while they go about surviving the northwoods winter. Weighing in at about 11 grams, chickadees may add as much as 10% of their body weight during daytime feeding, and then shiver it back off by the next day. They also may lower their core body temperature by as much as 20 degrees during the coldest nights to conserve precious body fat. I heard the chickadee's two note "cheeseburger," or, "hey sweetie" mating song for the first time back on December 28. It became more regular the second week of January, and is now in full chorus. While warblers vacation in the tropics and we humans spend most of our time indoors, chickadees are out there with fluffed feathers, singing songs, showing us winter is more fun than we think.