A small North American songbird with a black cap and bib, white cheeks, and a familiar “chick-a-dee” call. It searches branches for insects and seeds.
The black cap and bib frame white cheeks; the back is gray and the sides are buff. This is the typical adult appearance described by Cornell.
A winter field experiment followed 15 Black-capped Chickadees in Canada and found small daytime temperature changes linked to food at feeders. Researchers alternated feeder food availability and measured subcutaneous temperature during visits. Temperature declined as the air became colder, and the decline was greater when the feeder was empty. On days when the feeder was full, temperature peaked in mid-afternoon.
At the coldest air temperature recorded, −34°C, estimated temperature was about 0.4°C higher when food was available than when the feeder was empty. The difference was smaller in milder weather, while daytime patterns changed with day length and time of day. Natural food remained available during the experiment.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.
The temperature difference linked to feeder food was largest in the coldest conditions. Recording food access, temperature, and time of day together can help describe the resources birds use in winter.