The friendly, sometimes inquisitive Chickadees, are with us all through
the year. Ever active, they fly here and there searching for food, and
giving their cheerful calls.
Bill: The tweezer-like bill of this little bird is very well adapted to
the catching and eating of small insects and their eggs.
Habits: The Chickadees are never strangers to one who walks within sight
or hearing of them. They fly very near and have even been known to
perch upon the hand of different bird watchers who have
sufficiently gained their confidence. The gray and black colors of
these small balls of feathers match the tree trunks and branches
upon which the Chickadees climb and hang in search of food.
Song: The Chickadee tells his own name when he sings. Ella G. Ives has
said:
"I know a little minister who has a big degree;
Just like a long-tailed kite, he flies his D. D. D. D."
"Chickadee-dee-dee!" is the music that comes from this small gymnast
of the branches. Sometimes a "Phoebe" call note is also given. It is
quite simple to imitate this note by whistling. If you do it correctly
the Chickadee may answer.
Nest: An old, hollow stump or fence post is often chosen by the
Chickadee for a home. The nest within is built of moss, plant
fibers, grasses, and feathers. From five to nine eggs are laid.
They are of a white color spotted with a ruddy brown.
Ralph Waldo Emerson admired the Chickadee who braved the winter's cold,
and seemed so happy in the very coldest of weather. He wrote this about
the little bird:
"This scrap of valor just for play
Fronts the north wind in waistcoat gray,
As if to shame my weak behavior."
[Illustration: _The Chick-a-dee--5¼ inches_]