Marsh Wren

Overview

Marsh Wren: Small wren with lightly barred, warm brown upperparts, black-and-white triangular patch on upper back, and dull white underparts with pale brown sides. Crown is dark and eyebrows are white. Tail is relatively short and dark-barred. Black bill is long and slender. Legs and feet are black.

Range and Habitat

Marsh Wren: Breeds from British Columbia, central interior Canada, Manitoba, and Nova Scotia south to Mexico, the Gulf coast, and Florida. Spends winters across the southern tier of states, north to Washington on the west coast and east to New Jersey. Found in a variety of wetland habitats.

INTERESTING FACTS

The Marsh Wren is a secretive bird; even when singing the territorial male remains well hidden, briefly climbing a cattail for a look at an intruder.
Males destroy eggs and nestlings of neighboring birds. They will even attack their own eggs if the female is removed from the nest.
This behavior reduces competition for food in their area.
The males are known for their loud gurgling song. Learning continues throughout their adult life; it has been shown they will imitate songs presented to them on a tape recording or by a live tutor.
A group of wrens has many collective nouns, including a "chime", "flight", "flock", and "herd" of wrens.

The Marsh Wren has a large range, estimated globally at 4,800,000 square kilometers. Native to North America and introduced to Greenland, Cuba, and Bermuda, this bird prefers wetland and marine ecosystems. The global population of this bird is estimated at 7,700,000 individuals and does not show signs of decline that would necessitate inclusion on the IUCN Red List. For this reason, the current evaluation status of the Marsh Wren is Least Concern.