Wild Things in Your Woodlands: Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapilla)

摘要

The black-capped chickadee is a small songbird with a short bill. Male and female chickadees look alike, with a black cap on the head, a black bib, and white cheeks They are mostly grey on the wings, tail, and back, and they have buff colored sides. As the weather grows colder and snow begins to fall, black-capped chickadees remain active symbols of nature, even on the coldest winter days. Common year-round residents in New York State, chickadees survive the winter by roosting in dense vegetation andtree cavities. On cold winter nights, these small birds sometimes enter a state of regulated hypothermia, dropping their body temperature 18 - 22° F below normal daytime temperature. By doing so, they conserve a great deal of energy.