Wren
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- This article is about the bird. For other uses of the word Wren, see Wren (disambiguation).
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| Missing image Cactuswren63.jpg Cactus Wren | ||||||||||
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Donacobius |
The true wrens are members of a New World passerine bird family Troglodytidae containing 55 species.
A troglodyte means a cave-dweller, and wrens get their scientific name from the tendency of some species to forage in dark crevices. They are mainly small and inconspicuous except for their loud songs. These birds have short wings and a thin down-turned bill. Several species often hold their tails upright. All are insectivorous.
Only one wren, Troglodytes troglodytes, known as the Winter Wren in North America, also occurs in Europe, where it is commonly known simply as the Wren.
According to European folklore, the Wren is the King of the Birds. Long ago the birds held a contest to see who could fly the highest; at first it looked as though the Eagle would win easily, but just as the Eagle began to tire, the Wren crept out from under the Eagle's tail feathers and soared far above. The wren's majesty is recognized in such stories as the Grimm Brothers' The Willow-Wren and the Bear.
The wren also features in the legend of Saint Stephen, the first Christian martyr, who supposedly was betrayed by the noisy bird as he attempted to hide from his enemies. Traditionally, St. Stephen's Day has been commemorated by Hunting the Wren, wherein young Wren Boys would catch the bird and then ritually parade it around town. The tradition, and the significance of the wren as a symbol and sacrifice of the old year, is discussed in Sir James Frazer's The Golden Bough.
(Note that the 27 Australasian "wren" species are in fact unrelated. See Maluridae.)
The wren species are:
- Black-capped Donacobius Donacobius atricapillus
- White-headed Wren Campylorhynchus albobrunneus
- Band-backed Wren Campylorhynchus zonatus
- Gray-barred Wren Campylorhynchus megalopterus
- Giant Wren Campylorhynchus chiapensis
- Rufous-naped Wren Campylorhynchus rufinucha
- Spotted Wren Campylorhynchus gularis
- Boucard's Wren Campylorhynchus jocosus
- Yucatan Wren Campylorhynchus yucatanicus
- Cactus Wren Campylorhynchus brunneicapillus
- Bicolored Wren Campylorhynchus griseus
- Thrush-like Wren Campylorhynchus turdinus
- Stripe-backed Wren Campylorhynchus nuchalis
- Fasciated Wren Campylorhynchus fasciatus
- Gray-mantled Wren Odontorchilus branickii
- Tooth-billed Wren Odontorchilus cinereus
- Rock Wren Salpinctes obsoletus
- Canyon Wren Catherpes mexicanus
- Slender-billed Wren Hylorchilus sumichrasti
- Nava's Wren Hylorchilus navai
- Rufous Wren Cinnycerthia unirufa
- Sharpe's Wren Cinnycerthia olivascens
- Peruvian Wren Cinnycerthia peruana
- Fulvous Wren Cinnycerthia fulva
- Black-throated Wren Thryothorus atrogularis
- Sooty-headed Wren Thryothorus spadix
- Black-bellied Wren Thryothorus fasciatoventris
- Inca Wren Thryothorus eisenmanni
- Whiskered Wren Thryothorus mystacalis
- Plain-tailed Wren Thryothorus euophrys
- Moustached Wren Thryothorus genibarbis
- Coraya Wren Thryothorus coraya
- Happy Wren Thryothorus felix
- Spot-breasted Wren Thryothorus maculipectus
- Rufous-breasted Wren Thryothorus rutilus
- Speckle-breasted Wren Thryothorus sclateri
- Riverside Wren Thryothorus semibadius
- Bay Wren Thryothorus nigricapillus
- Stripe-breasted Wren Thryothorus thoracicus
- Stripe-throated Wren Thryothorus leucopogon
- Banded Wren Thryothorus pleurostictus
- Carolina Wren Thryothorus ludovicianus
- Rufous-and-white Wren Thryothorus rufalbus
- Sinaloa Wren Thryothorus sinaloa
- Plain Wren Thryothorus modestus
- Buff-breasted Wren Thryothorus leucotis
- Niceforo's Wren Thryothorus nicefori
- Superciliated Wren Thryothorus superciliaris
- Fawn-breasted Wren Thryothorus guarayanus
- Long-billed Wren Thryothorus longirostris
- Gray Wren Thryothorus griseus
- Bewick's Wren Thryomanes bewickii
- Socorro Wren Thryomanes sissonii
- Zapata Wren Ferminia cerverai
- Winter Wren Troglodytes troglodytes
- House Wren Troglodytes aedon
- Cobb's Wren Troglodytes cobbi
- Clarion Island Wren Troglodytes tanneri
- Rufous-browed Wren Troglodytes rufociliatus
- Ochraceous Wren Troglodytes ochraceus
- Santa Marta Wren Troglodytes monticola
- Mountain Wren Troglodytes solstitialis
- Tepui Wren Troglodytes rufulus
- Sedge Wren Cistothorus platensis
- Apolinar's Wren Cistothorus apolinari
- Paramo Wren Cistothorus meridae
- Marsh Wren Cistothorus palustris
- White-bellied Wren Uropsila leucogastra
- Timberline Wren Thryorchilus browni
- White-breasted Wood Wren Henicorhina leucosticta
- Gray-breasted Wood Wren Henicorhina leucophrys
- Bar-winged Wood Wren Henicorhina leucoptera
- Nightingale Wren Microcerculus philomela
- Scaly-breasted Wren Microcerculus marginatus
- Flutist Wren Microcerculus ustulatus
- Wing-banded Wren Microcerculus bambla
- Song Wren Cyphorhinus phaeocephalus
- Chestnut-breasted Wren Cyphorhinus thoracicus
- Musician Wren Cyphorhinus aradusde:Zaunkönige