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Sightseeing in Northern Michigan: Chickadees

Northern Michigan winters are not for the faint of heart.

Never easy for man, nor beast, nor bird.

There’s one small but mighty species that sticks it out.

Chief photojournalist Corey Adkins and Michelle Dunaway wanted to learn more about the chickadee for Sightseeing in Northern Michigan.

“They’re amazing, they’re smart, they’re inquisitive and they’re not afraid of us, which makes them all the more captivating,” says Barbara Norgaard Byrns,  

The chickadee: you see them at your feeders all year long.

“I think people like them because people like things that are cute, and they are sort of the quintessential cute bird with their over-size heads, and little bodies, and the white cheeks, and the eyes,” says Barbara.

But being cute means nothing to Mother Nature. These little guys are survivors.

“In the wintertime, they need one another and their packs, called a flock or a guild, and they will find each other toward the end of the summer and have a dominant pair, and other birds will join that pack maybe 14-16, whatever it was before, and that way they find food,” explains Barbara.

And when it comes to finding food…

“The titmouse and chickadee will find the feeders first and then the nut hatches and woodpeckers follow along and take advantage of that,” says Dan Kerby, Wild Birds Unlimited. “A lot of people want to know why they just don’t sit there and eat, but they just like to grab a seed and fly to a branch they feel comfortable at and they can eat the seed at their leisure, and not have any other birds chasing them away.”

You may be surprised where they go when it’s bedtime, especially on these cold winter nights.

“If they can find a cavity, they’ll go there, or a tree, or a dense thicket and, remember they’re small and they have to conserve energy, so they have to stay as warm as they can and have to fluff up their feathers,” explains Barbara.

“They like evergreens and things with a lot of cover that they can get in at night to get out of the cold and the weather. They’ll use old birdhouses and things like that,” says Dan. “Chickadees, on really cold nights, will go into a hibernation state and they lower their heart rate and they consume 25 percent less energy while they’re in this state, and their feet lock onto the branch so they don’t fall off.”

Barbara adds, “It’s really important in the winter to feed them. More than 50 percent of their nutrition comes from feeders. In the winter, it’s essential.”

Essential for the circle of life for us to support these little black, grey and white leaders of the backyard and appreciate their bravery, intelligence and will to live.

“They don’t fear us like other birds. I think they’re fascinated with us, like we are with them,” says Barbara.