A quick introduction to the Carolina Chickadee with photos for reference to help you identify the Carolina Chickadee on your feeder and in your yard.
The Carolina Chickadee is probably one of the smallest “feeder” birds (close to the size of a ruby-crowned kinglet) and one of the most frequent to visit our feeders as well. We published this blog to provide you with an introduction to the Carolina Chickadee so you can identify them when they visit your feeder and your yard.
While primarily interested in sunflower or safflower seeds, occasionally they need a higher protein fix and go for some dried mealworms instead. We just call our Chickadees “Dee” or “Dee Dee” for short, partly due to their name but also because you can hear them calling out from the trees whenever the feeders get low: “Dee Dee Dee Dee Dee”!
Carolina chickadees are quite a bit smaller than Eastern bluebirds, however, they have nested in our bluebird boxes several times over the past 6-7 years. This is always a pleasant thing to discover and you will see these little birds way more often than when they aren’t nesting nearby. They are pretty timid typically and hard to capture up close! Feel free to leave a comment and let us know what you think about these adorable little birds!
Carolina Chickadees have a great personality. They never bully smaller birds. They wait their turn for food and water so it’s important to have a good water source nearby. We use a terra-cotta plate, 12″ diameter or larger, and change the water out daily. After a few weeks of the plate of water existing in the same location, birds of all types will come and drink and even take baths. The Chickadees however are small enough that they can basically duck their whole heads under the surface for a moment, and then splash and shake the water out of their feathers. When it gets hot outside (80+ degrees Fahrenheit) you will see more and more birds taking baths.
I’ll dig up some more photos, but here is a picture with a male in the early-morning glow of the sun. Thanks for reading!
Carolina Chickadees will also drink from water in overflow trays below potted plants, and often we see them drinking from our Hummingbird Feeder Ant Traps as well! In the image below however, we captured a Carolina Chickadee eating from a freshly cleaned tube feeder.
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