Carolina Chickadee

Juniper Titmouse

Scientific Name: Baeolophus ridgwayi

Population Estimate: Unknown, but Least Concern status

Range / Habitat: Year-round in pinyon-juniper woodlands of the Great Basin / southwestern US.

Field Notes: Small, all-grey bird with small tuft to the head and beady black eye.

Personal Notes: Amazing photo by Richard in Arizona.

Tufted Titmouse

Scientific Name: Baeolophus bicolor

Range / Habitat: Year-round in lowland, mature deciduous and mixed woods of the eastern United States.

Field Notes: Large, short-crested and long-tailed tit. Grey upperparts, white underparts including check. Rufous flanks. Large, black, beady eye.

Personal Notes: A wonderful find on a wonderful day with friends in New Hampshire. We had a picture for years from Minnesota that we debated about being a Tufted Titmouse. This time we were sure! We then found this bird at the far western edge of his range, in Fontenelle Forest in Omaha, Nebraska.

Great Tit

Scientific Name: Parus major

Population Estimate: 300M - 1.1B

Range / Habitat: Resident in wooded areas throughout Europe, the Middle East, Central and Northern Asia, and parts of North Africa.

Field Notes: Hefty tit, with a black head and neck, prominent white cheeks, olive upperparts and yellow underparts.

Personal Notes: Some authors consider this to be a subspecies.

Eurasian Blue Tit

Scientific Name: Cyanistes caeruleus

Population Estimate: 20 - 44M pairs estimated in Europe

Range / Habitat: Temperate forest or scrubland in continental Europe, the Mediterranean, and in parts of the Middle East and North Africa.

Field Notes: Small, brightly colored songbird with yellow breast, blue cap and wings. Thin black eye stripe.

Personal Notes: Some sources consider this to be a subspecies.

Mountain Chickadee

Scientific Name: Poecile gambeli

Population Estimate: 12M

Range / Habitat: Year-round in dry, montane forests of the American West up to western Canada.

Field Notes: Small, active passerine with oversized round head. Striking black and white head with black neck and grey body. The white eyebrow differentiates from Black-capped Chickadee, Boreal Chickadee, and Chestnut-backed Chickadee.

Personal Notes: Chickadees are hard to photograph but we have been able to "lure" them by tapping rocks together and mimicking their call.

Chestnut-backed Chickadee

Scientific Name: Poecile rufescens

Population Estimate: 6.9M

Range / Habitat: Year-round in conifers along the Pacific coast of North America, from California up to Alaska.

Field Notes: Small passerine with bold black and white head markings of other chickadees. Back is rufous, which distinguishes it from Boreal, Black-capped, and Mountain Chickadees. Flanks may be either rufous or dull grey.

Personal Notes: Seen in various places throughout Vancouver Island. Richard got a great photo of this small, flitty bird.

Boreal Chickadee

Scientific Name: Parus Hudsonicus

Population Estimate: 8M

Range / Habitat: The boreal chickadee inhabits the northern coniferous forests of North America, breeding throughout Alaska, Canada and the northernmost states of the U.S.

Field Notes: A small songbird, the boreal chickadee (Parus hudsonica) is, as its name suggests, almost entirely restricted to the boreal forests of North America. The top of the head and the back of the neck often have a greyish tinge, which extends down the sides of the head to below the eye. A white stripe runs from the base of the bill to below the eye, while the chin and throat are black. The back, wings, rump and uppertail-coverts of the boreal chickadee are generally pale grey-brown, and the breast and abdomen are white.

Personal Notes:

Black-capped Chickadee

Scientific Name: Poecile atricapillus

Population Estimate: 34M, Least Concern status

Range / Habitat: Year-round in northern US, Canada and into Alaska. Found in any habitat that has trees or woody shrubs.

Field Notes: Small bird with tiny bill, oversized head, and no neck, giving it an overall round shape. Unmistakable and sharply-demarcated plumage as above. Characteristic "chicka-dee-dee-de" and "cheese-bur-ger" sounds.

Personal Notes: Richard can finally appreciate these handsome birds after winning the battle for a photo. We also appreciate their resilience in a Minnesota winter.