 |
|
Photo
by Anne Middleton, South Yarmouth, Massachusetts |
Photo by Gary Mueller,
Rolla, Missouri |
| This Black-capped Chickadee shows white in the greater wing coverts and dark, buffy sides. |
This is a classic Carolina Chickadee with a clean bib and no sign of white in the greater wing coverts. |
|
|
Photo by Jill McElderry-Maxwell,
Benton, Maine |
Photo by Kevin Carver,
Germantown, Tennessee |
| Comparing these two chickadees shows the differences in the edge of the bib. The Black-capped Chickadee has a less well-defined edge to the bib. This Black-capped shows a typical broad buffy color under the wings as well. |
Although this chickadee has a typical bib, it shows an unusual amount of chestnut coloring on the sides. Notice, however, that the coloring extends across the belly, making much less contrast between the sides and belly than can be seen on the Black-capped to the left. |
|
|
Photo by Lisa Barker,
Castle Rock, Colorado
|
Photo by Errol Taskin,
Shreveport, Louisiana
|
| There are always exceptions... This chickadee has a sharper bib edge than the Carolina Chickadee to the right. This bird does show the white greater wing coverts nicely, though. |
Although the bib on this Carolina Chickadee is a bit ragged, it's still fairly well-defined, and the greater wing coverts show very little white. |
|
|
Photo by Gord Belyea,
Ottawa, Ontario |
Photo
by Errol Taskin, Shreveport, Louisiana |
| And then there are the extremes. The bib on this Black-capped Chickadee goes unusually deep into the chest, as does the white on the nape. And the greater wing coverts are unusually dark for a Black-capped, showing just how difficult these birds are to tell apart. |
This Carolina Chickadee shows a clear lack of white in the greater wing coverts. |
|
|
