Stats

Lifespan: 2-3 yrs
Size: Tiny
Diet: Omnivore
Activity: Diurnal
Social: Flock
Biome: Temperate forest
Range: North America
Movement: Flight
Breeding: Egg-laying
Defense: Speed
Status: Common

About

A small, sociable songbird of North American forests, easily recognised by its black cap and bib against bright white cheeks. To survive frigid winter nights it can drop its body temperature by up to 12°C, entering a state of regulated hypothermia.

Life cycle

1.
egg
A small clutch of speckled eggs is incubated in a cup nest, turned and kept warm by the parent.
2.
hatchling
A pink, blind hatchling is fed by its parents in the nest, gaping its bill at every visit.
3.
juvenile
A feathered juvenile fledges from the nest, learning to fly and to forage close to its parents.
4.
adult
Fully grown with adult plumage and song.

Learn more

Taxonomy

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Paridae
Genus: Poecile
Species: Poecile atricapillus