Poecile gambeli
The Mountain Chickadee (Poecile gambeli) is a charming and familiar resident of western North America's high-elevation forests, easily distinguished by its prominent white supercilium, or 'eyebrow,' which stands out against its black cap and bib. This small, active songbird measures approximately 13-15 cm (5-6 inches) in length, boasts a wingspan of 19-21 cm (7.5-8.3 inches), and weighs a mere 9-14 grams (0.32-0.49 ounces). Its plumage is generally gray on the back, wings, and tail, with clea...
Found primarily in coniferous and mixed coniferous-deciduous forests at high elevations, ranging from montane to subalpine zones.
Their diet primarily consists of insects and spiders during the warmer months, supplemented heavily by conifer seeds, berries, and suet in winter, typically gleaned from foliage or bark, or retrieved from caches.
Mountain Chickadees are highly active, diurnal birds, spending their days foraging tirelessly, often hanging upside down from branches. They are adept at gleaning insects and spiders from bark and needles, especially in summer, but are renowned for their prodigious seed caching behavior, burying ...
The Mountain Chickadee is an obligate resident of the mountainous regions of western North America, spanning from British Columbia and Alberta in Canada southward through the western United States to northern Baja California and northern Mexico. Its breeding range encompasses the Rocky Mountains,...
Least Concern
- The Mountain Chickadee possesses an extraordinary spatial memory, allowing it to remember the locations of thousands of seeds it has cached, even months later. This memory capacity can actually increase in autumn when caching activity is highest. - To survive frigid mountain nights, Mountain Ch...