House wrens are also known

 as common wrens.

Image by Alan Control

Wrens are cavity nesters.

Description:

House wrens are 11 cm in size. Its small body enables it to climb into small places. Their bills are long, slightly curved. Many have eye rings with buff, or dusky brown eyebrows. It's upper parts are brown and their under parts are pale gray. Their stomach, tail, and wings have dark black bars on them. They have pink legs. Juveniles have reddish brown rumps and their under parts are darker in color. Most hold their tail in a vertical position.

Habits:

Wren’s diets consist of small invertebrates. These include millipedes, spiders, snails, caterpillars, grasshoppers, beetles, and ants.

They migrate to southern United States and Mexico for the winter.

Males return to the same spot year after year, but nothing is known what females and juveniles do.

Male and female house wrens look alike.

Image by Ann Cook

Done by Joshua

Habitat and Range:

Wrens can be found in farmland, openings, forests, shrub lands, suburban gardens, parks, backyards, near trees, thickets, open woodlands. They occupy the northern two thirds of the U.S. and in parts of Canada, including Southern Saskatchewan.

Breeding:

Breeds from southern B.C., east across to New Brunswick, and south to northern Georgia. It also breeds in Mexico and Central and South America. The breeding season starts in April or May. They raise up to 2-3 broods a year. Females lay 6-8 eggs; an egg a day!! The incubation period is 13-15 days. Both adults care for the young birds. The juveniles start to fledge at 12-18 days and then they are able to fly. Both parents continue to feed the young. Females sometimes start to re-nest while the male looks after the young.

Territory:

The male arrives first, once the territory is established the male builds dummy nests in all the available cavities in the territory. When the female arrives she may choose a nest that has been made by the male or pick out a different site.

 Although they only use one cavity at a time, they protect all the cavities in their territory. If any unfortunate bird nests in their territory the wrens may react by piercing or destroying this bird’s eggs. These birds are often eastern bluebirds or tree swallows.

A male wren may construct as many as a dozen nests, then the female may come along and destroy all of his hard work!