Wrens winter here and southern migrations

The house wren is a scrappy little critter. During nesting season, it fills cavity nesting holes with sticks even if the current owner has a nest with young or egg present. Fights may break out with the owner and that bird may lose because of the wren’s persistence.

If a wren nests near you, you will know because of the continuous singing that starts at dawn and continues most of the day and even into the night. The songs are very repetitious.

Populations usually arrive in April but are uncommon in this area. They like semi open areas with brush and trees.

Most of our wrens have a habit of cocking their tail up which is an aggressive act and often territorial.

Birds in this region are now named the Pacific wren They used to be called winter wrens, but DNA testing identified them as a species separate from the winter wren, located east of the Rocky Mountains.

The song of the winter wren is much sweeter sounding than our species. The Pacific wren has a harsh sounding melody that is raspy in nature. This bird winters in the lowlands and may migrate to the higher treed areas to nest in the mountains.

For years I had a wren’s nest in my 100-foot-long warehouse. Some years it nested in the side rack of my 2-1/2 ton truck. They like to nest in the root system of a blown-over tree but are not keen on bird houses. They nested on the 4 x 4 posts that supported the wall inside the building. I put a canopy over the nest so the youngsters were not exposed.

Bewick’s wren is very territorial and mostly a permanent resident, often singing off-and-on during the winter months. The song is a sweet rambling affair.

I put a nest box up on a post and over five years it was rejected. It was taken off and dropped to the ground – only then did birds nest in it.

In this species occasionally the female will sing. They are not very shy but keep their distance. When I was on the road in Texas I parked one night on a wooded campground, the next morning I woke up to find a Bewick’s wren stuffing my propane vent with nesting materials.

They will come to a bird feeder for some suet but are more interested in mealworms.

They have a number of sweet-sounding songs. I’ve chased more odd sounding songs of this wren then I care to admit. Their variety of songs has mislead me in identifications, species wise, thinking it was something new.

All wrens are small birds that are brownish in color and drab looking. The marsh wren is specific in habitat, it prefers cattail areas in or near salt or fresh water. The male will build several nests and is likely to nest with several females. He does keep some of the young nestlings. He makes enemies of close by nesters like blackbirds by breaking their eggs so red wing blackbirds may attack him on sight. Territories may be an acre or more in size.

Marsh wrens are prone to migrate south in winter, going to low land areas that are marshy in nature in southern states. They avoid areas with ice, though they may stay for a short period.