The Bird for All Seasons Award
In 1966 a movie entitled A Man for All Seasons was produced. It received an Academy Award.
But this is not about movies.
Creator Words is announcing a new award: The Bird for All Seasons.
Do not watch a screen to witness this award-winning bird. The Bird for All Seasons is always best viewed live…outside. View this award-winning bird in its habitat. Watch it fly. Listen to its cheery bright calls. Observe the ceaseless activity of this Bird for All Seasons.
Before announcing the winner, a simple disclaimer: every bird species is a Bird for All Seasons.
Why? It is a simple fact: every bird species lives through all seasons. All wild birds spend every living moment of their lives outside. Yes, our first clue is this bird is a wild bird.
And the WINNER IS!
Announcing the winner of the Bird for All Seasons Award! The Black Capped Chickadee! (Poecile atricapillus) It’s Latin name makes everything more official.
You ask, what qualifies the tiny chickadee to be the Bird for All Seasons?
This list is long:
Personality-right…birds do not have personalities. But if they did, we could easily say the chickadee is always cheerful. Nothing seems to dampen the good spirits of the black capped chickadee…not rain, wind, snow or cold temperatures. It’s also industrious. Chickadees are active from dawn until dusk in ALL seasons. Then there is chickadee curiosity. Step into a wooded area where there are chickadees. Though none are visible at first, your presence will soon draw the local chickadees. They come to see what you are and what you are doing. Wait. Watch. They will come.
Beauty-right…perhaps birds are not best described as beautiful. However, the distinctive black feathered head cap contrasted with shades of black, white and gray on the chickadee’s body add up to simple beauty. There is beauty in the simple pee wee call of this miniature dynamo for every month of the year. Even on the coldest days they call their feathered black capped companions. There is beauty in the two BB sized black eyes. Watch the sunlight reflect from them. Those eyes miss almost nothing. Watch the chickadee fly. Is there beauty in the bouncing flight of the chickadee? Yes…and vibrant life which cannot be mistaken.
Physical attributes…everyone knows who Superman is. OK, not everyone…but we all know about super heroes and the super powers they possess. The black capped chickadee is a bird with super hero like abilities…right…all birds have these qualities. Though native peoples come close, no human would ever consider living outside 24/7/365 for an entire lifetime. Regardless, no human has waterproofed feathers, non-migratory instincts, or the ability to adjust to extreme weather conditions like the chickadee. Consider these physical attributes: (and keep in mind… the black capped chickadee weighs 3/10 to 4/10 of one ounce!)
1. As we consider they physical abilities of our Bird for All Seasons Award remember this: the chickadee has circulatory, respiratory, digestive, nervous, muscular, skeletal systems-all in miniature and these are covered with a complete SYSTEM of feathers for flight.
2. Regulation of Body temperature from a day time high of 107 Fahrenheit the chickadee is able to lower its night time temperature about 20 degrees to 87 Fahrenheit. Why? Chickadees can’t eat at night. The lower body temperature lowers the bird’s metabolism which allows the bird to “fast” during the night. No person can do this night after night…for an entire winter season. Call it regulated hypothermia!
3. Body fat increase… during daylight feeding hours, the chickadee can add up to 7-10% more body fat…a lot when they weigh less than an ounce. During the night-time “fast” a chickadee loses this fat gain at night. It is “burned” up to keep warm without constantly feeding as in daylight.
4. Increase of Brain capacity…don’t we wish we could do this? Because chickadees do not migrate and because there are no insects to feed on in winter. The chickadee has the ability to actually INCREASE its memory capacity every fall. Why does it need increased memory? Chickadees cache seeds before winter. A cache is a place the bird stores a seed…a dry place…one it will find when needed on a bitter cold winter day. Biologists estimate that an individual chickadee can store up to 1000 seeds each day with the total seed cache exceeding 80,000 seeds! This is possible because every fall the chickadee brain neuron capacity increases to about 30%. The memory of the previous winter caches is “erased” by spring and each fall new memory is added. This is beyond awesome…it is a miracle. The chickadee is not alone in seed caching, we believe about 300 species of birds possess the caching behavior.
5. Survival at minus 30 degrees Fahrenheit…now combine each of these abilities. The chickadee is our Bird for All Seasons because it remains active in winter extremes of below zero temperatures. Think of it! The leg of a chickadee is comparable to a pencil lead. In that tiny leg blood flows…in temperatures that can drop 30 degrees below zero during the night…and cold blood flows past warm blood coming from the chickadee’s heart. That’s the way the vessels and arteries in the leg are arranged.
There is another reason to create the first Bird for All Seasons Award.
Birds direct our thoughts to God. At the creation of the world God said, “Let the waters swarm with fish and other life. Let the skies be filled with birds of every kind.” On the 5th day, God filled the seas with fish and the sky with birds. While birds are beautiful, mysterious a delight to watch and a 3.5 BILLION dollar a year American expense to feed… they are used by God to teach us about the love of God for you and me. Jesus taught us this about birds:
“That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn’t life more than food, and your body more than clothing? Look at the birds. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. And aren’t you far more valuable to him than they are? Can all your worries add a single moment to your life? ...Matthew 6:25-34
Want another reason to watch birds? Jesus reminds us that watching birds reduces worry…stress is lowered. Why did God fill the skies with birds? So we cannot miss the fact that God cares for us far more than the birds He created and we are therefore not to worry about life.
Once more, congratulations to Creator Words Bird for All Seasons: The Black Capped Chickadee.
And, my friend…do not worry-you are of great value to God. Now, go outside and find a chickadee to watch.