FEATHERED FRIENDS in Winter

By Lauren Parmelee, Senior Director of Education

Take a walk through the woods this winter and look and listen for our feathered friends. When you hear the “dee, dee, dee” calls of the Black-capped Chickadee, stop and watch their busy antics as they forage in the trees. Can you spot other birds that like to hang out with chickadees in colder months?

In warm weather, the diet of a Black-capped Chickadee is 90% insects, but as winter approaches they turn to a mixture of seeds, berries, insects, spiders and other proteins. Finding enough food is hard during the cold season, so these tiny birds travel together in flocks where there are more eyes to search for food and watch for predators like cats and hawks.

Chickadees weigh about ½ ounce, but Golden-crowned Kinglets weigh even less. Look for these tiny olive and gray birds with a yellow cap and black and white striped face. Kinglets seem to never stop moving, so also listen for their high-pitched “tsee, tsee” notes.

Tufted Titmice are gray with a distinct crest. As cousins of chickadees, they share the habitats of stashing food for later and making lots of noise when predators are about.

“Tap, tap, tap.” Black and white Downy Woodpeckers can be found on the branches and trunks of the trees looking for insects under the bark. The stiff tail of a woodpecker acts as a prop as it climbs and bangs its beak against the bark.

Nuthatches are often called “upside-down” birds because they move head first from the top of the tree trunk downward. The White-breasted Nuthatch has a black cap, gray back and white below. If you are walking in a pine forest, watch for the Red-breasted Nuthatch which is a bit smaller and has a rusty breast and a black eye-stripe.

Creeper camouflaged against the patterned bark of a tree. These tiny birds fly to the base of a tree, and circle around the trunk as they move upward. They use their thin, curved beaks to probe for spiders and insects living in the cracks in the bark.

Unlike most warblers, Yellow-rumped Warblers can be found here in the winter because they are able to supplement their insect diet with berries and seeds. Bayberries, juniper berries and poison ivy berries are a few on their menu