The Black-capped Chickadee, a small, recognizable bird, is a common sight across much of North America. Known for its distinctive “chick-a-dee-dee-dee” call, this active species thrives in wooded habitats, including suburban areas. Understanding their diet provides insight into their adaptability and survival strategies throughout the year.
Staple Diet Components
Black-capped Chickadees are omnivorous, meaning their diet includes both animal and plant matter. Insects form a substantial portion of their diet, especially during warmer months. They consume various insects, such as small caterpillars, aphids, beetle larvae, and insect eggs, which provide essential protein. Spiders and other invertebrates are also part of their diet.
Beyond insects, seeds are a consistent food source for chickadees. They commonly eat seeds from coniferous trees like pine and spruce, as well as those from deciduous trees such as birches. While less frequent, small berries and fruits are consumed when available. Additionally, these birds readily accept supplemental foods, including suet and peanuts, which provide concentrated energy.
Seasonal Dietary Adaptations
The diet of Black-capped Chickadees shifts significantly with the changing seasons, due to food availability and energy demands. During the spring and summer, particularly the breeding season, insects and other invertebrates become their primary food source, often making up 80-90% of their diet. This high-protein intake supports adults feeding their young, as nestlings rely heavily on soft-bodied insects like caterpillars for development.
As fall progresses into winter, when insects become scarce, chickadees transition to a diet with a higher proportion of plant matter, with seeds and berries comprising up to 50% of their intake. This seasonal adjustment emphasizes fat and carbohydrates, which provide energy to survive colder temperatures. They also consume insect eggs and pupae, and may even eat fat from animal carcasses.
Foraging Strategies
Black-capped Chickadees employ active and agile methods to find their food. They are known for their acrobatic movements, often hanging upside down to glean insects and spiders from the undersides of leaves, twigs, and bark crevices. They explore different surfaces, sometimes even catching insects in mid-air.
One strategy for these birds is caching, where they store individual food items, primarily seeds, for later consumption. This behavior is important during fall and winter, when food supplies can be limited. Chickadees exhibit a remarkable memory for these cache locations, remembering thousands of spots for weeks. They can also remember the quality of stored items and will prioritize higher-energy caches in colder months.
Attracting Chickadees to Your Space
For those interested in attracting Black-capped Chickadees, providing food sources and suitable habitat can be effective. They are frequent visitors to bird feeders and prefer black oil sunflower seeds, which are high in fat and easily opened. Suet and shelled peanuts also provide concentrated energy. Tube feeders, hopper feeders, and suet cages are effective for providing these foods.
Beyond feeders, planting native trees and shrubs create natural food sources and habitat. Birches, sumacs, and conifers like pine and spruce provide seeds and attract insects that chickadees feed on. Minimizing insecticide use helps maintain a healthy insect population for them. Providing a clean, shallow water source is also beneficial, as chickadees need water for drinking and bathing year-round.