Chestnut-backed Chickadee; charm, cheer and chirping!

December 24, 2006 on 8:41 pm | In Bird Alert |

Greetings!
I’ve been looking forward to doing a sketch of the Chestnut-backed Chickadee. I consider him to be one of the most darling of all Sonoma County birds, and our birdfeeder is currently a favorite neighborhood destination for a flock of these bitty fowls.

His plumpness makes him sweet and the chubby white cheek patches seem only to add to his jolly aspect. And yet, I wouldn’t want to sum up the Chestnut-backed Chickadee’s whole character in his cuteness. We have found him to be, in fact, one of the most interesting backyard birds in all Sonoma County.

The complex and curious behaviour of the Chestnut-backed Chickadee

Nothing provides the birder with so constant an opportunity for observation as the presence of a feeding station in the garden. We like the tube-like feeders, and fill ours with organic sunflower seeds from the market. This is certainly simpler than taking extra trips to buy so-called ‘birdseed’, and by offering organic food to the birds, we know we are doing them no harm. If you’ve been reading the Birding Sonoma County blog, you know by now that our simple feeder brings in nearly 20 species of winter wild birds. We love to observe their behavior. Some are bold, some are bullies, some are timid and secretive. The Chestnut-backed Chickadee is quite a brave bird, allowing us to approach within a few feet of him while he eats, and it is this circumstance that has enabled us to notice a strange and thought-provoking habit of his.

Invariably, without fail, the Chestnut-backed Chickadee takes 2 sunflower seeds each time he perches on the feeder. The first one he drops to the ground. The second one, he eats himself. Why, we have asked ourselves, is he doing this? We would like to propose the 3 following theories:

a) He is gardening. He drops a seed in hopes of planting it and farming a crop for himself of sunflower plants that will ensure food next season.

b) He has an agreement with the birds who find it easier to eat on the ground - the sparrows, towhees and juncos. He either is doing this out of generous friendship, or he is bartering with them for something else he needs. A worm in return? Alarm calls from bigger birds when a predator is near?

c) We are witnessing chickadee religious practices. In his gratitude to the Creator for a stable food source, he is putting part of his harvest back into the ground, as many early cultures have done.

It may be that after reading our theories, you will think we are a bit loopy, but my husband and I are firm believers in the concept that human inability to understand the language and behaviours of animals is what has lead to the accepted thought that animals are somehow different than we and that everything they do falls under the rather broad and unsatisfactory heading of ‘instinct’. If the human species continues to evolve, we may, perhaps, one day become smart enough to comprehend what is now a mystery to us, and what we only sense a hint of in the extreme examples of dolphins, monkeys, whales. In fact, a recent study on the language of Black-capped Chickadees shows human strivings toward understanding how other animals converse. It is no surprise to us that the findings of this study indicate that the simple-seeming chatter of these birds is far more complex than had ever been realized before.

Because of this, we would assert that it isn’t all that far-fetched to theorize that chickadees have a very reasonable motive for this seed dropping habit we have observed. Unfortunately, we can only guess at what it is, and would enjoy hearing other theories on this. The Oak Titmouse also drops his first seed from time to time, but not with the same regularity. Interesting to note that the two birds are relations. I have seen the Housefinch do the same - but it strikes me as messiness in his case.

Further Field Notes on the Chestnut-backed Chickadee, Parus rufescens

North America is home to 6 kinds of chickadees:
Chestnut-backed Chickadee
Mountain Chickadee
Black-capped Chickadee
Mexican Chickadee
Boreal Chickadee
Grey-headed Chickadee

The only kind you are ever likely to see in Sonoma County, California is the first on that list. You’d need to go far north to see the Black-capped, or to the Yosemite region to see the Mountain Chickadee. Fortunately for us, our local bird is one of the prettiest of them all.

Measuring at some 4 1/2″ - 5″ from head to tail, his rufous back and sides set him apart from all of his relations. Look for him in forest and gardens, very often in flocks. The preferred nesting method is to excavate a rotten tree stump and then line the hole with soft moss or with hair. 5-8 cream colored eggs are common. He is a year-round bird here, but to my observation, seems most abundant and visible in the cold months of the year. I always eagerly expect visiting flocks to neighborhood conifers in October or November. Our birdfeeder seems to do the trick in inviting them to stick around the house for many, many weeks.

Take some time to enjoy the vigorous, agile foraging of the Chestnut-backed Chickadee this winter. You’ll seldom see a sweeter or more interesting local bird.