This is definitely a bit of a departure from the other Maple-related information on our site, but keeping and studying our small flock of Chickens has been an interesting pastime for us and I wanted to share some of what we've learned.
What is interesting, is that by learning to mimic some of their sounds, I'm able to communicate with them in their own language!
Most of the items below have been repeatedly observed across multiple flock members since the spring of 2016 when we started keeping chickens (and spending Way too much time with them, interacting, observing, and taking notes!). These seem to be common communications among chickens and are not just idiosyncrasies of a single bird or even a single variety of chickens as our flock has included at least four different varieties and mixes, as well as adult members added from an outside flock.
| Vocalization and/or Body Language | Meaning | Response / Notes | Sample |
| Mother with young chicks - constant quiet clucking | I'm here and everything is ok | Chicks peep contentedly | Mommy Clucking |
| Mother with young chicks - loud clucking | Everyone come here | Chicks pretty reliably come over | Mommy Calling Babies |
| Mother with young chicks - very loud, sharp clucks | Emergency - everyone come here Now! | Chicks Sprint over | |
| Young chicks - constant quiet peeping | I'm here and am ok | Mother clucks contentedly | Babies Peeping |
| Young chicks - loud, repeated peeping | I'm here; where are you? | Mother may make louder clucks to call the chick and may move around to see if there are any stragglers | |
| Young chicks - very loud, sharp peeps/yelps | I'm lost; where are you? Help! | Mother often goes to the chick to call/guide it back to the group | Looking for Mommy |
| Adult males, mother with new chicks - sharp "Book!" noises | I've found some yummy food - come get it! | Chicks come running | Mommy Signalling Food |
| Adult males - sharp "Book" coupled with picking up/dropping a tidbit repeatedly - often referred to as "tidbitting". | I've found some yummy food - come get it! - occasionally a ploy to attract a hen for mating | Hens and other flock members will come to investigate | Rooster calling with food |
| Adult subordinate male - pick up/drop tidbit repeatedly but without the "Book!" vocalization | Invites the hens to come for food without attracting the attention of the alpha male (who may well intervene) - often a ploy to attract a hen for mating | A hen may notice and come to investigate | |
| Low "Book" noise, much gentler than the regular food noises, usually made by younger birds | I've found something unusual that might be food but am not sure | A more experienced bird may come over and if no interest is shown, the item is abandoned as a food source. I've seen this done over a mushroom, a dead garter snake, and a dead leopard frog - all of these items were investigated by older birds and then abandoned | Asking if this is OK to eat |
| Adult males - "Cock-a-Doodle-Doo!" | I'm here! I'm big and strong! Notice me! | Seems to be largely ignored by everyone but may cause a rival rooster to reciprocate | |
| Adult males - howling noise similar to a traditional "cockadoodle doo!" call but not well enunciated - usually done around dawn. | It's morning, and I'm awake/here. Occasionally done when disturbed by a noise outside the coop in the wee hours | Seems to be largely ignored by everyone but may cause a rival rooster to reciprocate | |
| Adult males - clapping wings together behind the back with an exaggerated upwards flapping motion | I'm here, I'm big, I'm dominant. Often done right before a "Cock-a-Doodle-Doo!" call | Seems to be largely ignored by everyone but may cause a rival rooster to reciprocate | |
| Low roaring sound - mostly the males but others will as well | Predator alarm - Be alert | All the heads come up and look in the direction the rooster is looking | Predator Warning |
| Low roar with additional barking noise - mostly the males but other will as well | Predator alarm - take cover Immediately! | Everyone literally sprints to get under cover | |
| Hen - sharp barking noise | Help, I can't figure out how to get to the group! | A rooster may come to investigate. Often I would guide the hen back to the flock and she would settle down and relax immediately | |
| Stiff body and steely-eyed stare | Confrontation posture - usually eye-to-eye with a rival | Can escalate to a fight but often one bird will break eye contact and walk away - that bird is the loser of that confrontation and usually has lower rank | |
| Head lowered and neck feathers standing out | Active confrontation - fight/pecks are imminent or occurring | Generally is reciprocated by the rival - first bird to back down and walk/run away is the loser and has lower rank | |
| Soft peck on the back | I don't like what you're doing or where you're standing - get lost. | Subordinate birds generally move off, often with a yelp | |
| Hard peck on the back | I Really don't like what you're doing or where you're standing - get lost and don't do it again. | Subordinate birds generally move off, often with a yelp | |
| Peck on the head or neck | A more serious admonition to stop doing whatever you're doing, or to go away immediately | Subordinate birds generally duck their heads and jump/run off, often with a yelp | |
| Male - Single Wing down and foot shuffle (usually the right wing), doing a semi-circle around a bird | Dominance display | Subordinate bird will often move out of the way | |
| Male - Single Wing down and foot shuffle (usually the right wing), pressing up against a bird | I'm excited to see you! | The boys will do this to the hens but also to us on occasion if they're excited to see us | |
| Hen with chicks - Wing down and foot shuffle - directed at other older birds (not the chicks) | Back OFF Now! Keep away from my babies! | Males will back off. I've only ever seen a female do this if she has chicks with her - It's a very assertive action and normally the girls don't display this behaviour | |
| Male - both wings down, running towards a hen | Showing displeasure with the location of the hen or her activities - often done when a hen is off on her own away from the group | The hen will run away (fearfully) from the rooster and back towards the group. Once she has rejoined the group the rooster stops chasing, relaxes his posture, and everyone becomes at ease. Interestingly, sometimes if we notice a hen separated from the group in an area that is vulnerable to predators, we'll call to and get the attention of a rooster, point to the hen, and he'll see her and will go after her in this way - it's a means the rooster employs to shepherd and keep all the girls safe, and it's particularly interesting that they understand our pointing and understand Why we're pointing and then take action to correct the problem. Our cockatoo, on the other hand, most definitely does Not understand pointing, so the chickens have a cognitive advantage in this area | |
| Hen with chicks - outright attacking/biting others | You're too close or are threatening my babies - now you must PAY! | Everyone in her path runs for their lives - mothers with babies can by hyper-aggressive and protective and even the large males are fearful when her aggression is pointed their way | |
| "BookBookBook Ba-GAH-book!" | Flock Alarm call - not predator, just something is not right - could be a sound or sight that startled them, or one of the flock members is having an issue (young hen struggling to lay an egg - her yelps and complaints can get the whole group into alarm, for example) | This alarm call is usually picked up and repeated by other flock members - it isn't unusual to have the entire flock yelling in this way. We can usually calm them down, if nothing serious is going on, just by talking gently to them. | |
| A single, sharp, "Ba-GAH!" | Personal alarm exclamation - a single bird is startled and voices their surprise or displeasure. They sometimes do this if we pick them up when they don't want to be. | The flock may look over but takes no action | |
| Low grumbling noises | Personal displeasure/complaint - the roosters often do this when I make them walk back to their coop or pen, when they Really want to stay doing what they were doing while free-ranging | They'll grumble and complain the whole way home | |
| Low purring noise | Pleasure, similar to what a cat will do | Some of our hens, when in quarantine, will do that when we come by to give them treats, or even if they just see us walk by their cage and are happy for some company. | Toodles happy to see me |
| Soft trilling noises, similar to the purr but higher pitched and somewhat more melodic | Settling down to sleep for the night or for a daytime rest | The flock settles for some sleep or lazing about. Often multiple birds will make these noises once one flock member starts. | |
| Preening another bird | Show of affection or sympathy/comfort | Usually done by adult females - females will gently preen males that they like to show affection. We have also seen females preen another female that has just experienced a trauma (hawk attack - no serious injuries but she was stunned a bit/traumatized) to provide comfort | |
| Hen - Whining noise | Show of discomfort, displeasure, or complaint | Often when a hen needs to lay an egg but it doesn't come right away, they will complain. Could be for a variety of other reasons, like wanting to go outside, etc. | Aphrodite whining to go outside |
| Hen - Mating posture | Show of readiness to mate and also showing a preference for a particular male by flattening down against the ground with wings slightly splayed out to the sides, often with tail slightly elevated. | Hens will sometimes to this for a male that they like. Interestingly, I've had a few of the girls do this for me - it's very cute and I give them a pat on the head and then they get up and shake themselves and go about their business. I don't believe any have ever done this for Angi - I wonder if they can tell human males from females and so do it exclusively for me? | |
| Rooster - false mating | Upon a hen assuming the Mating Posture for particular rooster, if the rooster is not up for mating at the moment, he will grab the feathers at the back of the hen's neck (which is what is typically done when mating) but not actually mount her. After a few seconds the rooster lets go of the neck feathers, signalling that he's done, the hen gets up and shakes herself off and goes about her business. | I'm speculating that the rooster, who doesn't actually want to mate in this instance, goes to the trouble of pretending by grabbing the neck feathers as a sort of acknowledgement of her gesture. I've only seen this a handful of times, all of them with our alpha rooster. |