CHICKADEE 67 



Chickadee : Parua atricapillus. 



Top of head, nape, and throat black ; rest of body gray ; under 

 parts lighter ; wing- and tail feathers edged with white. Lengthy 

 aboiat 5| inches. 



Gkographic Distribution. — Eastern North America ; breeds 

 from southern Illinois and Pennsylvania northward to Labra- 

 dor, and southward along the Alleghanies to North Carolina ; 

 in winter migrates a short distance below the southern limit 

 of its breeding range. 



He who knows the Chickadee only by name is 



an enviable person, for he has still before him 



the initial pleasnres of one 



of the choicest of all bird 



friendships. When seen 



in a clearing as the pretty 



bird flits from one tree to 



another, his short wino-s 



and lono' tail ^ive mm a 



f! , , 1 . , Chickadee, 



bobby flight by which we 



can recoo:nize him at a distance. But when he 

 clings to the gray branches, his soft grayish suit 

 with its black cap and the trimmings that cut the 

 bird form hide him as well as the brown suit of 

 the little Wren protects him when hunting in the 

 dark crevices of the brown earth. In many re- 

 spects the Wren and Chickadee are as unlike as 

 their livery. This is especially true of their songs, 

 for while the Wren lives up to his family connec- 

 tions — being related to the Catbird and Mocker 

 — the Chickadee is no musician. Still every note 

 he utters is dear to his friends, and he has a varied 



