Birds of the Upper Cumberland Region: Species Accounts

Carolina Chickadee (Poecile carolinensis)

Carolina Chickadee [ventro-lateral view of adult]. Photograph Credit: Rickey Shive; Metcalfe County, Kentucky; 7 October 2018; note the eye of this bird, in which is reflected the camera that took this image.

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Abundance: Common during all seasons; recorded in all Regional counties (Map of UCR Distribution); the Regional population trend is stable (see also Regional Bird-Monitoring Plan).

Status: Permanent Resident; specimen (4 June 1938; Monticello, Wayne County, Kentucky; W. M. Perrygo; Wetmore 1940); photograph [lateral view of adult] (Stephen J. Stedman; City Lake, Putnam County, Tennessee; 13 February 2012).

Regional High Count and CBC/CBB High Count: 267 (23 December 2009; Cumberland County, Tennessee [Crossville CBC]; m. ob.); FBC/FBB High Count: 225 (15 September 2007; Putnam County, Tennessee (FBC); m. ob.); SBC/SBB High Count: 158 (12 May 2007; Putnam County, Tennessee [SBC]; m. ob.).

Breeding: Confirmed (Recent).

Habitat: x

YardWatch Results 2003 and 2004: registered on 120 (of 125) monthly check-lists during 2003 and on 194 (of 206) check-lists during 2004, resulting in a YardWatch frequency classification of Common each year; this result quite expectedly coincides with the overall Regional abundance classification of this very feeder-adaptable species. YardWatch results for the chickadee are exactly the same results as were obtained for the Tufted Titmouse, another unsurprising element of the YardWatch data, given the propensity of these two species to flock together and to use feeding stations in yards and neighborhoods.

Foray Results: A summary of data from UCR Forays follows (to view a map displaying foray data for a county or a sub-Region for this species, click on the name of an underlined county or state below):

* Because some foray blocks fall into two or three counties, the total of blocks in the Kentucky or Tennessee portions of the Region is less than the sum of the blocks in the counties of each portion of the Region; similarly, because some blocks fall into both states, the total of blocks for the Region is less than the sum of the blocks in the two states.

Remarks: The chickadee is one of two species, the other being the Tufted Titmouse, that form the nucleus of foraging flocks of woodland passerines during late summer, fall, winter, and early spring; these flocks attract other species of passerines and, depending on the season, may be fairly small (< 10 individuals in mid-winter) to moderate-sized (c. 30 individuals or more during mid-autumn).  Individuals are thought to be attracted to these loose assemblages in part to gain the greater security from predators that is afforded by many pairs of alert eyes as opposed to the lesser degree of security that is afforded by a single pair of eyes.  The exact composition of foraging flocks during the various seasons and in various habitats of the Region would make for a good study.

Check-lists of Birds for the Counties of the UCR

Check-lists of the birds of each county of the Upper Cumberland Region may be viewed by clicking on the links below. For each county, there are two check-lists: one list that shows the species that have been observed and where possible documented in the county within the larger list for the entire Region; and one list that includes only the species observed in the county with annotations for the date and observers for at least one sighting (the ultimate goal of the latter list will be to include annotations for the very first known Regional observation of each species in that county; this goal is probably one that will take many years to complete, if completion is even a possibility). To see if the species discussed in this species account has been observed in a county, click below or click on the link for the Map of UCR Distribution near the top of the page.

Check-lists of Birds for Some Public Access Birding Sites of the UCR

Check-lists of the birds of some public access birding sites within the Upper Cumberland Region may be viewed via the links below. To see if the species dealt with in this species account has been observed within any of these sites, click on the appropriate link below. See the pages for each county within the Gazetteer for links to additional smaller public access birding sites with check-lists in progress.

Literature Cited