Bewick's Wren

Bewick's Wren

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1. Description
2. Sound
3. Conservation Status
4. Other Names
5. Cool Facts
6. Full detailed species account

A bird at home near human buildings and gardens, the Bewick's Wren was formerly common across the Midwest and eastern mountains. Eastern populations dropped drastically starting early in the 20th century, and now it is nearly restricted to the West.

Description

• Small gray and brown songbird.
• Moderately long tail often held cocked over back.
• Thin pointed bill.
• Long white stripe over eye.

• Size: 13 cm (5 in)
• Weight: 8-12 g (0.28-0.42 ounces)

Sex Differences

Sexes alike.

Sound

Song a series of whistled phrases and trills; variable across range. Also a raspy scolding call.

Conservation Status

Increased range into upper Midwest and along western Appalachians in mid-19th century. Eastern portion of population underwent severe decline starting in early 20th century and continuing through the 1990's. Eastern populations are nearly gone, with only a few scattered breeding locations left. For a discussion of the decline of the eastern birds, illustrated with data from the Audubon Christmas Bird Count, click here.

Other Names

Troglodyte de Bewick (French)
Chivirín cola obscura (Spanish)

Cool Facts

• The severe declines of Bewick's Wren in the eastern United States coincided with range expansion in the House Wren. It is suspected that the House Wren, which frequently removes eggs from nests in cavities, was directly responsible for the decline. The increased availability of nest boxes may have helped the spread of the House Wren, and therefore the decline of the Bewick's Wren.

• The male Bewick's Wren learns its song while still on the parents' territory. It learns the song not from its father, but rather from the neighboring territorial males. The song repertoire developed before the first winter is retained for life.

Sources used to construct this page:

Kennedy, E. D., and D. W. White. 1997. Bewick's Wren (Thryomanes bewickii). In The Birds of North America, No. 315 (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). The Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, PA, and The American Ornithologists' Union, Washington, D.C.