Benchmark Review 2.11.21

Benchmark Review 2.11.21

Of Feathers, Fat and Freezing

1 It’s winter. Forty degrees below zero. How do you stay warm? How do you survive?

2 Now imagine you are only as big as a person’s thumb and weigh no more than a graham cracker. That’s about the size of black-capped chickadees. These friendly little birds are often seen at bird feeders throughout the winter. They are plump-looking critters, with black, white, and gray feathers, and they live year-round in the forests of North America, from Alaska through Canada and across the northern states. Since they do not migrate to the tropics when the thermometer drops below freezing, black-capped chickadees have adapted to the cold in amazing ways.

3 Chickadees living near Fairbanks, in interior Alaska, experience –30° to –40°F on a regular basis, with temperatures sometimes plunging to –60°F or colder. Birds have a body temperature of about 104°F. This means that sometimes there is well over a 100-degree difference between a chickadee’s body and the air temperature only an inch away.

4 Like all birds, chickadees have feathers, so in a sense, they wear little down parkas all the time. The colder the temperature, the more they fluff their feathers by sticking them out, away from their bodies. Feathers are the perfect insulation, trapping air between them and acting as a barrier between the cold outdoor weather and the birds’ bodies.

5 Chickadees can fluff their feathers out to an inch thick—wider than their own bodies—to protect themselves against the cold. At extreme temperatures, they look like round, feathery balls.

6 But chickadees don’t have feathers on their legs or feet, so how do they

keep their tiny toes warm? They don’t. Without any feathered insulation, heat

would quickly be lost and much energy wasted in attempting to keep their toes as warm as the rest of the body. So they allow their feet to cool to just above

freezing. This way, the rest of the chickadee doesn’t get cold by having cold blood returning to the body from its legs.

7 But even such energy efficiency by itself is not enough to survive the frigid

winter days. In the same way that we must burn more fuel in the winter to keep

our houses warm, chickadees also need more fuel to stay warm. And what sort

of fuel do chickadees burn? Food. As the days shorten, the temperature drops,

and since chickadees forage only during daylight hours, they have the least

amount of time to eat during the season when they need the most fuel. As soon

as there is enough light to see by, they spend all of their time finding and eating

as much food as possible until the light fades.

8 Chickadees begin preparing for winter while the green leaves of summer

are still on the trees. They stash away bugs, seeds, or fat from dead animals,

tucking these morsels into crevices in tree bark. The higher the fat content the

better, since calories—the units of energy in food—are concentrated in fats.

9 To a chickadee, body fat is fuel. Since they don’t have crops in which they

can store food to eat later, they must eat enough each day to survive the long,

18-hour night. By feasting on fatty foods, chickadees can increase their body

weight by about 8 to 10 percent—which would be like a 100-pound kid gaining 8

to 10 pounds in one day. Increasing their body fat during the day is like stoking

the fire before going to bed. Throughout the night chickadees burn their recently

accumulated fat, and by the next morning, none is left.

10 Even with their feathered insulation and daily storing away of fat,

chickadees must still conserve as much energy as possible at night. They do not

roost together in flocks as some birds do but spend the night alone. As darkness

falls they cram themselves into little hollows in the trees. Once settled, they

lower their body temperature, just as we lower the thermostat in our houses to

save energy at night.

11 Although fragile in many ways, the tiny black-capped chickadee shows how

tough it really is by surviving the bitterly cold winters of northern North

America. The next time you see a chickadee visiting your bird feeder, just think,

could you survive out there?

Multiple Choice

The word accumulate comes from the Latin cumulus, which means “a pile.” What does accumulated in paragraph 9 mean?

• Lost

• Awakened

• Warmed

• Gathered

Multiple Choice

What is the author’s primary purpose in writing the selection?

• To provide information about the best locations for chickadees to live in order to survive

• To describe the ways chickadees have adapted to be able to stay alive in cold climates

• To communicate the problems chickadees encounter as a result of their small size

• To explain how the feathers of chickadees function in different environments

Multiple Choice

Which sentence best supports the idea that chickadees take action to keep their bodies warm at night?

• This means that sometimes there is well over a 100-degree difference between a

  chickadee’s body and the air temperature only an inch away. (paragraph 3)

• Without any feathered insulation, heat would quickly be lost and much energy wasted in

  attempting to keep their toes as warm as the rest of the body. (paragraph 6)

• Since they don’t have crops in which they can store food to eat later, they must eat

  enough each day to survive the long, 18-hour night. (paragraph 9)

• They do not roost together in flocks as some birds do but spend the night alone.

  (paragraph 10)

Multiple Choice

What is the best summary of the selection?

• Chickadees may be small birds, but they are very strong and intelligent. Unlike other

  birds, chickadees do not migrate in the winter. Instead, they enjoy staying in cold climates

  such as Alaska, even though the temperature can be much colder than their bodies.

• Chickadees are tiny birds that can be found in extremely cold climates. To stay warm,

  they rely on fluffing their feathers, eating lots of food, and using the nights for sleeping.

  They have found many ways to protect their bodies from becoming too cold.

• When the winters grow colder, chickadees spend time fluffing their feathers. The colder it

  becomes, the more they fluff, so that sometimes they look like furry balls. By doing this, they are able to stay warm and protect their skin from the icy temperatures an inch away.

• Many people have seen the tiny birds known as black-capped chickadees. Although these

  birds are only the size of a person’s thumb, they have very thick feathers. They also

  prepare by storing food so that they can survive during long winters

Chickadee's Song

From dawn to dusk in darkling air

we glean and gulp and pluck and snare,

then find a roost that’s snug and tight

to brave the long and frozen night.

5 We fluff and preen each downy feather,

Sing fee-bee—and laugh at the weather!

For if we’re quick and bold and clever,

winter’s chill won’t last forever.

The sun wheels high, the cardinal trills.

10 We sip the drips of icicles.

The buds are thick, the snow is slack.

Spring has broken winter’s back.

Quick and bold and brave and clever,

we preen and fluff each downy feather.

15 Sing fee-bee—laugh at the weather—

for winter doesn’t last forever!

Multiple Choice

What does the imagery in lines 9 and 10 of the poem suggest about the speaker?

• The speaker feels concerned about how quickly the day passes.

• The speaker feels bothered by the dripping water.

• The speaker feels relieved to see another type of bird.

• The speaker feels encouraged by the change in weather conditions.

Multiple Choice

The actions described in the first stanza (lines 1–4) suggest that the speaker is —

• surprised

• hardworking

• carefree

• greedy

Multiple Choice

The poet’s use of line length helps contribute to the poem’s —

• change in tone

• vivid imagery

• rhythm

• alliteration

Multiple Choice

What does the repetition in line 6 and line 15 emphasize?

• The speaker’s willingness to join other birds

• The speaker’s confidence in surviving a harsh winter

• The speaker’s cheerfulness when experiencing an unfamiliar situation

• The speaker’s enjoyment of winter

Multiple Choice

The imagery in lines 3 and 4 of the poem creates a sense of —

• loneliness

• affection

• acceptance

• security

Multiple Choice

The rhythm and rhyme scheme used in the poem contributes to a mood of —

• gratefulness

• cheerful energy

• curiosity

• mutual respect

Of Feathers, Fat & Freezing AND Chickadee's Song

Multiple Choice

What do both the selection and the poem describe?

• Methods that chickadees use to stay warm

• Ways that chickadees help each other survive

• What chickadees must do without in harsh conditions

• Changes that occur inside the bodies of chickadees

Multiple Choice

Which statement from the selection is best supported by the poem?

• These friendly little birds are often seen at bird feeders throughout the winter.

  (paragraph 2)

• They are plump-looking critters, with black, white, and gray feathers, and they live

  year-round in the forests of North America, from Alaska through Canada and across the

  northern states. (paragraph 2)

• Chickadees begin preparing for winter while the green leaves of summer are still on the

  trees. (paragraph 8)

• Although fragile in many ways, the tiny black-capped chickadee shows how tough it really

  is by surviving the bitterly cold winters of northern North America. (paragraph 11)

Multiple Choice

Which is an action in the poem that is not described in the selection?

• Storing food in tree bark

• Allowing feet to become cold

• Drinking water from icicles

• Burning fat all night long

Multiple Choice

The selection is different from the poem in that the poem describes how the chickadee —

• realizes that winter is coming

• spends time collecting food

• tends to become hungrier as it gets colder

• becomes aware that winter is finally ending

Multiple Choice

What do both the selection and the poem reveal about the chickadee?

• It is more active in summer than in winter.

• It is curious about its surroundings.

• It is adapted to its environment.

• It is capable of changing its body temperature.

THE END