What does a chickadee say?

Chickadees are small songbirds that belong to the Paridae family. There are several different species of chickadees found throughout North America, Europe, and Asia. Chickadees are known for their distinctive vocalizations, described as a simple whistled “chick-a-dee” call. This is where their common name comes from. But what exactly does a chickadee say and what do their vocalizations mean? Read on to learn more about chickadee vocalizations.

Chickadee Species

There are 7 species of chickadees found in North America:

• Black-capped chickadee – Most widespread, found across northern North America
• Carolina chickadee – Found in southeastern U.S.
• Mountain chickadee – Found in western North America
• Boreal chickadee – Found in northern forests of Canada and Alaska
• Chestnut-backed chickadee – Found along Pacific coast
• Mexican chickadee – Found in southwestern U.S. and Mexico
• Gray-headed chickadee – Found in southeastern Alaska

In Eurasia, there are several more chickadee species, including the willow tit, marsh tit, and Siberian tit. While there are some differences between species, all chickadees share the familiar “chick-a-dee” vocalization.

Chickadee Calls

The most well-known chickadee vocalization is their namesake “chick-a-dee” call. This call is made up of several note types:

• A – A high, whistle note
• B – A buzzy, nasally note
• C – A “chick” or “fee-bee” note
• D – A rattling, fast “dee-dee-dee” note

These notes are usually combined in a fixed order, starting with a few A or B notes, followed by the C note, and ending with many D notes. So a typical “chick-a-dee” call would sound like:

A-B-C-D-D-D-D-D-D

The rhythm and pacing of these note combinations varies between species. The black-capped chickadee’s call has a slower, more methodical rhythm compared to the fast, hurried Carolina chickadee call.

Purposes of Chickadee Vocalizations

Chickadees use their “chick-a-dee” call for a variety of reasons:

• Staying in contact with others – Keeps flock members together
• Signaling alarm – A sharp, intense call signals danger
• Defining territory – Calls defend a feeding territory
• Attracting mates – Males sing to attract females in spring
• Indicating dominance – The number of D notes signals status

Chickadees also have a high-pitched descending whistle they use during courtship. And young nestlings have a begging call they use to get food from parents. So while “chick-a-dee” is the most recognizable, chickadees have a diverse vocal repertoire.

Variation Between Species

While all chickadees share the familiar chick-a-dee call, there are subtle differences between species:

• Number of D notes – Black-capped use 6-12, Carolina use 2-5
• Note frequencies – Mountain have a higher pitched call
• Rhythm/speed – Boreal have a faster, more hurried call
• Call complexity – Chestnut-backed have a large repertoire of calls

Researchers think these variations help chickadees identify which species is calling and defend territories. The more D notes in a call, the more dominant the bird.

Mimicking Other Species

Remarkably, chickadees are able to mimic the vocalizations of other species. Black-capped chickadees can learn the calls of tufted titmice, northern cardinals, blue jays, and other songbirds. Mimicking helps chickadees flock with new species and expand their habitat range.

Some key examples of chickadee mimicry include:

• Tufted titmouse “peter-peter” call
• White-breasted nuthatch nasal “yank” call
• Red-breasted nuthatch nasal whistled call
• Blue jay alarm calls and cries

Chickadees are often the first species to find food sources, and by mimicking others, they can recruit more birds to help scout for food. This vocal flexibility gives chickadees an advantage.

Using Technology to Study Calls

Recording Calls in the Field

Ornithologists use specialized recording equipment to capture chickadee vocalizations in natural settings. Devices like parabolic microphones allow clear recordings even at long distances. Tiny microphones can also be placed in nest boxes to record chickadee families.

This allows researchers to gather a large sample of calls to study subtleties like differences between individuals, populations, behaviors, and contexts. Field recordings provide chickadee communication data that lab studies cannot replicate.

Sound Analysis Software

Once chickadee calls have been recorded, researchers use audio analysis software to study the vocalizations. Programs like Raven allow each note to be visually inspected as a spectrogram displaying frequency, pitch, and amplitude over time.

This software enables in-depth analysis of note types, note order, rhythms, and syntax. Statistics on call length, pace, complexity, and frequency profiles can be gathered. Researchers can quantify geographic and species variation.

Acoustic Monitoring

Automated acoustic monitoring uses microphones and recording devices placed across environments to continuously gather animal sounds. This mass audio data can be processed with software to extract and identify species vocalizations.

For chickadees, this allows researchers to track daily and seasonal patterns in calling behavior and how it changes across environments. Artificial intelligence models are even being developed to automatically classify huge volumes of chickadee calls.

Conclusion

While most people are familiar with the “chick-a-dee” call, chickadee vocal communication is actually a complex system. Different species have distinctive calls varying in rhythm, pitch, and syntax. Chickadees also mimic other birds to facilitate mixed-species flocks. By recording calls in the field and analyzing them with audio software, researchers continue uncovering new complexities in chickadee communication.