Poecile rufescens (Chestnut-Backed Chickadee)

Common Names

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Click on the language to view common names.

Common Names in English:

Chestnut-Backed Chickadee

Common Names in French:

Mésange à Dos Marron

Description

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Family Paridae

A large Family of small stocky woodland passerine birds with short stout bills. They nest in holes , and lay white speckled eggs .

Physical Description

Species Poecile rufescens

· Length: 4.25 inches · Short bill · Dark brown crown · White face · Black throat · Rufous back and sides · Gray wings and tail · White underparts · Sexes similar

Biology

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Diet

Mostly: Insects

Lesser Quantities of: Seeds Fruit

Reproduction

Breeding Habitat : Woodland
Nest Location: Mid-story/canopy nesting
Nest Type: Cavity
Clutch Size: 5-8
Length of Incubation : ? days
Days to Fledge : ?
Number of Broods: ?

Migration

Permanent resident

Taxonomy

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Domain: Eukaryota () - Whittaker & Margulis,1978
- Kingdom: Animalia () - Linnaeus, 1758 - animals
  - Subkingdom: Bilateria () - (Hatschek, 1888) Cavalier-Smith, 1983
    - Branch: Deuterostomia () - Grobben, 1908
      - Infrakingdom: Chordonia () - (Haeckel, 1874) Cavalier-Smith, 1998
        Phylum: Chordata () - Bateson, 1885 - Chordates
        Subphylum: Vertebrata () - Cuvier, 1812 - Vertebrates
        Infraphylum: Gnathostomata () - Auct. - Jawed Vertebrates
        Superclass: Tetrapoda () - Goodrich, 1930
        Class: Aves () - Linnaeus, 1758 - Birds
        Subclass: Neornithes () - Gadow, 1893
        Infraclass: Neoaves ()
        Superorder: Passerimorphae ()
        Order: Passeriformes () - C. Linnaeus, 1758 - Perching Birds
        Suborder: Passeri ()
        Parvorder: Passerida ()
        Superfamily: Sylvioidea ()
        Family: Paridae () - Chickadees, Titmice
        Genus: Poecile ()
        Specific name: rufescens - (Townsend, 1837)
        Scientific name: - Poecile rufescens (Townsend, 1837)

Unambiguous Synonyms

Poecile rufescens (Townsend, 1837)

Notes

Name Status: Accepted Name . Latest taxonomic scrutiny: 17-Oct-2001

Similar Species

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Boreal Chickadee has less white in the face than the Chestnut-backed Chickadee and has duller brown flanks and back. Other chickadees lack rufous backs and flanks.

Members of the genus Poecile

There are approximately 47 species in this genus:

P. affinis · P. atricapilla (Black-Capped Chickadee) · P. atricapilla atricapilla · P. atricapillus (Black-Capped Chickadee) · P. atricapillus atricapillus · P. atricapillus colletti · P. atricapillus elenae · P. atricapillus occidentalis · P. atricapillus practica (Black-Capped Chickadee) · P. atricapillus turneri · P. carolinensis (Carolina Chickadee) · P. carolinensis extimus · P. carolinensis impiger · P. cincta (Gray-Headed Chickadee) · P. cincta lapponica · P. cincta lathami · P. cinctus · P. davidi · P. gambeli (Mountain Chickadee) · P. gambeli abbreviatus · P. gambeli atratus · P. gambeli baileyae · P. gambeli gambeli · P. gambeli inyoensis · P. hudsconica · P. hudsonica (Boreal Chickadee) · P. hudsonica columbiana · P. hudsonica hudsonica · P. hudsonica littoralis · P. hudsonicus (Boreal Chickadee) · P. lagubra · P. lugubris · P. lugubris lugubris · P. montana · P. montanus · P. palustris · P. palustris dresseri · P. palustris palustris · P. rufescens (Chestnut-Backed Chickadee) · P. rufescens barlowi · P. rufescens rufescens · P. sclateri (Mexican Chickadee) · P. sclateri eidos · P. sclateri sclateri · P. superciliosa · P. superciliosus · P. tunkanensis

Bibliography

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Banks, R. C., R. W. McDiarmid, A. L. Gardner, and W. C. Starnes 2003. Checklist of Vertebrates of the United States, the U.S. Territories, and Canada.
Ehrlich, P., Dobkin, D., and Wheye, D. (1988). The Birders Handbook: A Field Guide to the Natural History of North American Birds. New York: Simon and Schuster Inc. (info on clutch size, length of incubation, days to fledge and number of broods.)
Robbins, C.S., Bruun, B., Zim, H.S., (1966). Birds of North America. New York: Western Publishing Company, Inc. (Length and wingspan info.)

More Info

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Search for Pictures: images.google.com
Search for Scholarly Articles: Google Scholar
Search using Scientific Name and Vernacular Names: All the Web | AltaVista Canada | AltaVista | Excite | Google | HotBot | Lycos
Search using Specialized Databases: GenBank | Medline | Scirus | CISTI/CAL | Agricola Periodicals | Agricola Books

Notes

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Contributors

Bisby, F.A., Y.R. Roskov, M.A. Ruggiero, T.M. Orrell, L.E. Paglinawan, P.W. Brewer, N. Bailly, J. van Hertum, eds (2007). Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of Life: 2007 Annual Checklist. Species 2000: Reading, U.K.
Brands, S.J. (comp.) 1989-2005. Systema Naturae 2000. The Taxonomicon. Universal Taxonomic Services, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. [http://sn2000.taxonomy.nl/Taxonomicon/]. Access date: Nov 23, 2005
Global Biodiversity Information Facility. Accessed March 12, 2008. http://www.gbif.org Mediated distribution data from 8 providers.
Hines, J. E., Gregory Gough, J. R. Sauer, et al. USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center
Sauer, J. R., J. E. Hines, and J. Fallon. 2005. The North American Breeding Bird Survey, Results and Analysis 1966 - 2004. Version 2005.2. USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Laurel, MD
Sauer, J. R., S. Schwartz, and B. Hoover. 1996. The Christmas Bird Count Home Page. Version 95.1. USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Laurel, MD
Universal Biological Indexer and Organizer. uBio.org accessed July 17, 2008.

Data Sources

Accessed through GBIF Data Portal March 12, 2008:

Avian Knowledge Network: eBird
Avian Knowledge Network: Great Backyard Bird Count
Avian Knowledge Network: Project FeederWatch
Borror Laboratory of Bioacoustics
Canadian Biodiversity Information Facility: Provincial Museum of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada. Birds (Aves)
Canadian Biodiversity Information Facility: Royal British Columbia Museum
Canadian Museum of Nature: Canadian Museum of Nature Bird Collection
Museum of Vertebrate Zoology: Terrestrial vertebrate specimens
New Brunswick Museum: NBM birds
Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History: Santa Barbara Musem of Natural History
University of Alaska Museum of the North: MSB Birds Specimens

Identifiers

Biodiversity Heritage Library NamebankID: 3848416
Catalogue of Life Accepted Name Code: ITS-554387
Global Biodiversity Information Facility Taxonkey: 13852363
Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) Taxonomic Serial Number (TSN): 554387
Natural Heritage Network Species Identifier: ABPAW01070
Zipcode Zoo Species Identifier: 13340