Bianca Bursts Into Flight

Black-Capped Chickadee in Flight

As Bianca the Black-Capped Chickadee perched on her branch…

I heard an alarm call from another Black-Capped Chickadee nearby:

Chick-a-dee-dee-dee-dee-dee-dee-dee-dee-dee-dee!

Now, Chickadees are tiny birds, and they often band together to mob and harass predators. They summon other Chickadees with their “dee dee” call::

“Calling all chickadees! Predator perched to strike!”

And the number of “dees” signals the size of the threat. So I figured ten “dees” could mean my neighbor’s cat, who likes to lurk in the bushes near my feeders.

I fired a burst, figuring Bianca might join the defensive mob…

And off she flew!  But I never saw the cat or a hawk, so can’t tell you if I was so clever or made a lucky guess.

So you tell me. Was I lucky or smart?

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I guessed my neighbor’s cat might be lurking nearby, but didn’t spot him. Maybe he knows the language of Chickadees too, and shot out of range before he could be mobbed?

 

 

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