Head tipped low, a chickadee eyes the camera

Close view of a black-capped chickadee's head tipped downward, black cap, white cheek and dark eye facing the camera, against blurred snow, with cut-off yellow and white lettering at left.

Footage: Lesley the Bird Nerd · 4:21 · uploaded December 11, 2017
Written by My Crittercam · published November 6, 2026

The Story

Head tipped low and one dark eye on the lens, the bird against this blur of snow is a black-capped chickadee, and it has the look of a small auditor going over the books. The clip counts down five things this species can do, and the best of them are answers to winter.

At this range the marks are easy: black cap, white cheek, black bib, and a tiny pointed bill aimed downward. A buff wash runs along the side. Nothing here says male or female, because the two look identical. The whole package is about the size of a sparrow and weighs 0.3 to 0.5 oz.

The countdown opens with feeding upside down, and this tilted stance is a fair hint of the bird's working geometry. Chickadees forage mostly by hopping among twigs and gleaning, often hanging upside down to reach the underside of a branch. Whether this one is feeding, the frame does not say.

Memory takes two of the five places, and the numbers explain why. In fall a chickadee can store up to 1,000 seeds a day, or 80,000 in a season, tucking them into bark crevices and small cavities. Each one is a location to recover later. One study of wild birds found new neurons joining the hippocampus, the brain's spatial-memory area, all year, with a peak in October. Hippocampus size also runs larger in chickadees from colder, harsher places.

The clip saves its top spot for the night. On the coldest nights a chickadee can let its body temperature slide from 107.6 °F to 82 °F, saving energy that would burn off in the dark. It sleeps in thick branches or a tree cavity, beak tucked under its wing.

The days are spent paying for all this. A chickadee eats more than 35 percent of its weight daily and can hold a 100 °F body temperature even when the air is 0 degrees. Mostly a permanent resident, it stays for the whole bill, and from first light it is back on the twigs.

Field Guide

A close-up of a black-capped chickadee, head tipped low over snow, fronts a countdown of five feats that runs from upside-down feeding to cold-night temperature drops. Full field guide for the Black-capped Chickadee

Common name	Black-capped Chickadee
Scientific name	Poecile atricapillus
Family	Paridae (Chickadees and Titmice)
Size	Length 5–6 in (12–15 cm); about the size of a sparrow.National Audubon Society (Guide to North American Birds) · National Park Service, Mississippi National River & Recreation Area
Weight	0.3–0.5 oz (9–14 g).National Audubon Society (Guide to North American Birds)
Wingspan	6–8 in (15–20 cm).National Audubon Society (Guide to North American Birds)
Diet	Mostly insects, seeds and berries; seeds and fruit may be no more than 10 percent of the summer diet and up to 50 percent in winter.National Audubon Society (Guide to North American Birds)
Active when	Diurnal: active by day from first light, sleeping at night in thick branches or tree cavities.Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute
Range	Alaska through the southern half of Canada, south to the upper two-thirds of the United States; mostly a permanent resident.Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan · National Audubon Society (Guide to North American Birds)
Lifespan	Estimated average about 2.5 years; most live about two to three years. Oldest on record 12.5 years (ADW) or over 11.5 years (Smithsonian).Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan · Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute
Conservation status	IUCN Red List: Least Concern; NatureServe global rank G5. Numbers apparently stable.NatureServe Explorer · National Audubon Society (Guide to North American Birds)
Cam notes · Time of day	day
Cam notes · Season	winter, snow behind the bird

Habitat

Mixed and deciduous woods, willow thickets, groves and shade trees, most common in open woods and forest edge, especially with birches or alders.National Audubon Society (Guide to North American Birds)
Will live in suburbs as long as nest sites are available, and is a frequent visitor to backyard feeders.National Audubon Society (Guide to North American Birds) · Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan
The snowy wooded blur behind this bird suits a species that is mostly a permanent resident and sometimes turns up in small flocks in dense pine forests during harsh winter weather.National Audubon Society (Guide to North American Birds) · Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan · Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute

Behavior

In this clip
Upside-down feeding, the first feat in this countdown, is routine foraging: the bird mostly hops among twigs and gleans, often hanging upside down to reach the underside of branches.National Audubon Society (Guide to North American Birds)
In this clip
Food storage, a centerpiece of this clip, can run in fall to as many as 1,000 seeds a day or 80,000 a season, hidden in bark crevices and small cavities.Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute · Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (Minnesota Conservation Volunteer)
In this clip
The clip ends its countdown on the night temperature drop. Smithsonian figures put it at 107.6 °F down to 82 °F on the coldest nights, a way of saving energy.Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute
At feeders a chickadee may take sunflower seeds one at a time and fly off to stuff them into bark crevices.National Audubon Society (Guide to North American Birds)

Questions

Why do chickadees hang upside down?

It lets them reach the underside of branches while foraging. They mostly hop among twigs and glean, and sometimes hover or catch insects in mid-air.National Audubon Society (Guide to North American Birds)

How can a chickadee remember all those hiding spots?

One study of wild birds found its hippocampus, the spatial-memory part of the brain, adding new neurons with a peak in fall. Hippocampus size is larger in chickadees from colder, harsher places.PNAS / PubMed · Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute

Do chickadees stay all winter or fly south?

Most stay, since the species is mostly a permanent resident making at most short-distance moves within the same general region. Occasional fall invasions send large numbers south, mostly in the northeastern states and southeastern Canada.National Audubon Society (Guide to North American Birds) · Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan

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