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Boreal Chickadee (Parus hudsonicus)
Species Profile

Did You Know?

The difference between a chickadee’s core temperature and winter air temperature in Alaska can be as much as 150°F but chickadees have a heavy down coat and other adaptations to shield them from the cold.

General Description

Active, acrobatic and agile with a perky cheerful air, the chickadee is one of the most widely recognized birds in Alaska forests. The boreal chickadee is one of four chickadee species that occurs in the state and is one of few songbirds found almost exclusively in boreal forests of Alaska and Canada. Like the dark spruce forests they inhabit, boreals have relatively drab colors — brown cap, bright rufous flanks and brown back. The boreal’s common call is similar to that of other chickadees — chick-a-dee-dee-dee — but is slower and more nasal.

Territorial during the breeding season, chickadees flock during the rest of the year. Small flocks made up of several adult pairs and unrelated juveniles are commonly seen from late summer through winter. Flocks of chickadees sometimes cross paths with kinglets, creepers, nuthatches and downy woodpeckers and form temporary associations. The birds usually roost in dense conifers but may also roost in cavities, under eaves of houses or other protected sites.

Chickadees are specially adapted to endure Alaska’s rugged winters. They have much denser, better-insulating plumage than other songbirds their size and a special ability to put on fat quickly. Birds burn fat as fuel to keep warm in winter. A chickadee can put on eight percent of its body weight in fat each day. Chickadees are also able to drop their body temperature at night in order to conserve their winter fuel.