Black-Capped Chickadee (Wild Bird Guides)

Rating:
Summary: A richly illustrated and informative account.
Review: WILD BIRD GUIDES: BLACK-CAPPED CHICKADEE. By Susan M. Smith. 90 pages. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books, 1997. ISBN 0-8117-2686-X (pbk).

Early this January, out of some obscure impulse, and although living in a fairly heavily built-up area, I decided to set up a birdbath and feeder in my miniscule garden. The feeder held a seed bar - sunflower seeds, mixed seeds, peanuts, oats; a fruit bar - banana, pear, apple, orange; and a 'calory' bar - honey water, and suet cake. It was an experiment. And it was wildly successful. My garden since has been filled with a constant stream of birds, both large and small, and their behavior provides a constant source of delight and interest.

Of the seven or so species which regularly show up, undoubtedly the most interesting is the Shijukara, Japan's near-relative to the Black-capped Chickadee. I was intrigued by the behavior of this distinctively marked tiny bird, with it's black cap and bib, which will boldly approach within a few feet of where I sit, grab a sunflower seed, fly off to a nearby branch, and then, while firmly holding the seed between its feet, noisily pound away at it with its beak to break it open. A desire to know more quickly led me to the present book by Susan M. Smith.

Smith, who is a member of the Department of Biological Sciences at Mount Holyoke University, tells us that "the chickadee's ability to use their feet in food manipulation is relatively unusual among perching birds" (p.43). Somewhat to my relief, she also assures us of the propriety of feeders since, with the ongoing destruction of habitat and foraging areas, feeders provide an essential source of food and water in winter, and the survival rates of birds is far higher in areas which have them. Her book, a brief popular treatment with a scientific flavor, offers a fascinating digest of what is currently known about this remarkable bird and includes chapters on Reproduction, Winter Flocks, Diet and Foraging, Social Behavior and Communication, Surviving the Cold of Winter, Population Ecology, Relations with Humans.

The book is well-printed on high quality glossy paper, stitched, bound in a sturdy wrapper, and is stunningly illustrated throughout with full-color photographs.
But although well-written and richly informative, and although the author's love and respect for the chickadee are certainly evident, there is a complete absence of personal anecdote. Readers might consider supplementing Smith's account with the following less 'scientific' but more warmly human and anecdote-filled book:

HAND-TAMING WILD BIRDS AT THE FEEDER. By Alfred G. Martin. 144 pages. Chambersburg, Pennsylvania: Alan C. Hood & Company, Inc., 1963 and reprinted. ISBN 0-911469-07-9 (pbk).

Both Smith's and Martin's wise observations about the chickadee are truly impressive, and no-one who is at all interested in birds will want to miss either of these
fascinating books.

Rating:
Summary: A richly illustrated and informative account.
Review: WILD BIRD GUIDES: BLACK-CAPPED CHICKADEE. By Susan M. Smith. 90 pages. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books, 1997. ISBN 0-8117-2686-X (pbk).

Early this January, out of some obscure impulse, and although living in a fairly heavily built-up area, I decided to set up a birdbath and feeder in my miniscule garden. The feeder held a seed bar - sunflower seeds, mixed seeds, peanuts, oats; a fruit bar - banana, pear, apple, orange; and a 'calory' bar - honey water, and suet cake. It was an experiment. And it was wildly successful. My garden since has been filled with a constant stream of birds, both large and small, and their behavior provides a constant source of delight and interest.

Of the seven or so species which regularly show up, undoubtedly the most interesting is the Shijukara, Japan's near-relative to the Black-capped Chickadee. I was intrigued by the behavior of this distinctively marked tiny bird, with it's black cap and bib, which will boldly approach within a few feet of where I sit, grab a sunflower seed, fly off to a nearby branch, and then, while firmly holding the seed between its feet, noisily pound away at it with its beak to break it open. A desire to know more quickly led me to the present book by Susan M. Smith.

Smith, who is a member of the Department of Biological Sciences at Mount Holyoke University, tells us that "the chickadee's ability to use their feet in food manipulation is relatively unusual among perching birds" (p.43). Somewhat to my relief, she also assures us of the propriety of feeders since, with the ongoing destruction of habitat and foraging areas, feeders provide an essential source of food and water in winter, and the survival rates of birds is far higher in areas which have them. Her book, a brief popular treatment with a scientific flavor, offers a fascinating digest of what is currently known about this remarkable bird and includes chapters on Reproduction, Winter Flocks, Diet and Foraging, Social Behavior and Communication, Surviving the Cold of Winter, Population Ecology, Relations with Humans.

The book is well-printed on high quality glossy paper, stitched, bound in a sturdy wrapper, and is stunningly illustrated throughout with full-color photographs.
But although well-written and richly informative, and although the author's love and respect for the chickadee are certainly evident, there is a complete absence of personal anecdote. Readers might consider supplementing Smith's account with the following less 'scientific' but more warmly human and anecdote-filled book:

HAND-TAMING WILD BIRDS AT THE FEEDER. By Alfred G. Martin. 144 pages. Chambersburg, Pennsylvania: Alan C. Hood & Company, Inc., 1963 and reprinted. ISBN 0-911469-07-9 (pbk).

Both Smith's and Martin's wise observations about the chickadee are truly impressive, and no-one who is at all interested in birds will want to miss either of these
fascinating books.