Bird Sounds: Black-Capped Chickadee

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The bold little chickadee is a welcome sight at any feeder.

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Photo by USFWS Mountain-Prairie via Wikimedia Commons

Black-capped Chickadee Calls

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Here you can identify the sounds and birdsong of the black-capped chickadee. You may recognize their “chick-a-dee-dee-ee” or the whistled “fee-bee.”

  1. Listen first for the two-note whistle of the male black-capped chickadee. It’s a very clear two-note song that drops in pitch and sounds like “fee-bee.” Now you know that THAT sound is! The males begin singing in mid-January, and the song increases in frequency as winter progresses. Females also sing occasionally.
  2. Then, listen for the chickadee call which sounds like “chickadee-dee-dee.“  Interestingly, they will use an increasing numbers of dee notes when they are alarmed.

If you wish to attract the friendly chickadee, they will readily visit bird feeders and especially like sunflower seeds or suet in winter. You may see them take the food and fly away to store in a tree crevice for later.

Their diet is mostly seeds, insects, and berries. They can been seen hopping among branches and foraging for food, even flying out to catch insects mid-air.

The bird sounds is complimentary, with permission from The Macaulay Library at The Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Click here to listen to the sounds of other birds!

Have you heard a Black-Capped Chickadee? Add your comments below. Be sure to let us know where you live or where you’ve heard this bird sound before!

About The Author

Tom Warren

Tom Warren is a lifelong bird enthusiast. Tom is also committed to protecting birds and their habitat as a Trustee for both Massachusetts and New Hampshire Audubon, and the Harris Nature Center. Read More from Tom Warren

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