A Wren
Wrens are highly vocal, and in many species males and females sing duets. Most wrens are found in pairs, but a number of tropical species are highly gregarious and forage in flocks. Nesting habits vary; some build nests in natural or man-made hollows, whereas others construct nests—often quite large—of twigs and grasses. The male marsh wren of North America often builds several “dummy nests” before the female accepts one and the pair settles down to breed.
The only wren to reach Europe, known simply as the wren (but more properly as the northern wren), is common to woods, parks, and gardens. It is about 9 cm (3.5 in) to 12 cm (5 in) long, brown, barred with black above, and paler below. It carries its short tail cocked upwards. It readily accepts nest boxes, even close to houses. The female lays five to seven white and darkly-spotted eggs twice a year and, in common with all wrens, is fiercely territorial. It is a subspecies of the winter wren and is known as the bob-tail species in North America where it is the smallest of all wrens.
Wren
Wren, common name for members of a family of passerine (perching) insectivorous songbirds. The wrens constitute an almost entirely American group; only one of about 70 species has reached Eurasia. Most are small, ranging from 10 to 22 cm (4 to 8.75 in) in length. The black-capped donacobius of marshy areas of South America, one of the largest species, was formerly placed in the mockingbird family, but behavioural and anatomical studies have shown it to be an aberrant wren. Its plumage is black above and white below, but most wrens are brown, with white, black, and grey in solid patterns, streaks, and spots.
A Wren
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