About

Chicken Screaming On Tree or Rooster Screaming is an exploitable series of memes based on an image of a chicken standing at the top of a tree paired with a screaming sound effect, as if the bird is making the sound. The image of the chicken in the tree started going viral in mid-November 2025 and was paired with the screaming sound in late December of that year, proving significantly viral on Instagram Reels. As a meme, the screaming chicken is often attached to the end of clips to denote that the clip is cringeworthy or painful to watch.

Origin

On November 14th, 2025, the Instagram^[1] page pissed posted an image of a chicken sitting at the top of a tree in front of a house, writing in the description, "They stopped crossing roads huh," garnering over 76,900 likes in two months. This is the earliest known upload of the image, although it may not be the true original.

On December 21st, Instagram^[2] user gif_name_ posted a video edit that begins with a clip from a dating show. A man asks a woman if she likes Taylor Swift. She says that she does, and he says that he prefers Kanye before walking off. The video then cuts to the chicken image, combined with a scream. The post gained over 6,600 comments in about two weeks.

Spread

The screaming chicken meme continued to spread in late December 2025 and early January 2026.

On December 28th, 2025, Instagram^[3] user quixofficial posted a clip of an original song based on the meme, using the scream as part of the drop, garnering over 423,000 likes in just over a week.

On January 2nd, 2026, Instagram^[4] user scream.606 posted a meme using the chicken meme after a man introduces his new girlfriend, used to denote the girlfriend's deep voice and suggest that she is transgender, garnering over 25,000 likes in four days. It was reposted by X^[5] user @IdentifyAsHulk on January 5th, garnering over 15,000 likes and 2.2 million views in a day.

Various Examples

Search Interest

External References