The
Winter Wren (
Troglodytes troglodytes), also known as the
Northern Wren, is a very small
birdBirds are winged, bipedal, endothermic , vertebrate animals that lay eggs. There are around 10,000 living species, making them the most numerous tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Birds range in size from the Bee Hummingbird to the ...
, a member of the mainly
New WorldThe New World is one of the names used for the non-Afro-Eurasian parts of the Earth, specifically the Americas and possibly Australia. When the term originated in the late 15th century, the Americas were new to the Europeans, who previously thought of the world as consisting only of Europe, Asia,...
wrenThe wrens are passerine birds in the mainly New World family Troglodytidae. There are about 80 species of true wrens in about 20 generaThe genus eponymous of the family is Troglodytes....
family Troglodytidae. It is the only one of nearly sixty species in the family that occurs in the
Old WorldThe Old World consists of those parts of Earth known to Europeans, Asians, and Africans in the 15th century.-Regions:The Old World includes Europe, Asia, and Africa , plus surrounding islands...
; in
EuropeEurope is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally divided from Asia to its east by the water divide of the Ural Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian Sea, the Caucasus Mountains , and the Black Sea to the southeast...
it is commonly known simply as the
Wren. It is noteworthy among songbirds both because of its long and complex songs and because it is one of the few passerine species that has a distribution spanning both North America and Eurasia. It is also highly polygynous, an unusual mating system for passerines
It occurs in Europe, a belt of
AsiaAsia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.6% of the earth's total surface area and with approximately 4 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population.Asia is traditionally defined as part of the...
from northern
IranIran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran is a country in Western Asia. The name Iran has been in use natively since the Sassanid period and came into international use from 1935, before which the country was known internationally as Persia...
and
AfghanistanThe Islamic Republic of Afghanistan is a landlocked country in south central Asia. It is variously described as being located within Central Asia, South Asia, or the Middle East...
across to
Japanis an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, and
North AmericaNorth America is the northern continent of the Americas, situated in the Earth's northern hemisphere and in the western hemisphere. It is bordered on the north by the Arctic Ocean, on the east by the North Atlantic Ocean, on the southeast by the Caribbean Sea, and on the west by the North Pacific...
. It is only
migratoryBird migration is the regular seasonal journey undertaken by many species of birds. Bird movements include those made in response to changes in food availability, habitat or weather. These however are usually irregular or in only one direction and are termed variously as nomadism, invasions,...
in the northern parts of its range.
The scientific name is taken from the
GreekGreek , an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages, is the language of the Greeks. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. In its ancient form, it is the language of classical...
word "troglodytes" (from "trogle" a hole, and "dyein" to creep), meaning "cave-dweller", and refers to its habit of disappearing into cavities or crevices whilst hunting
arthropodAn arthropod is an invertebrate that has an exoskeleton , a segmented body, and jointed attachments called appendages. Arthropods are animals belonging to the Phylum Arthropoda , and include the insects, arachnids, crustaceans, and others...
s or to roost. Taxonomy of the genus
Troglodytes is currently unresolved, as recent molecular studies have suggested that
CistothorusCistothorus is a genus of birds in the Troglodytidae family.It contains the following species:* Apolinar's Wren, Cistothorus apolinari* Mérida Wren, Cistothorus meridae* Marsh Wren or Long-billed Marsh Wren, Cistothorus palustris...
spp. and
Thryorchilus spp. are within the
cladeA clade is a term used in modern alpha taxonomy, the scientific classification of living and fossil organisms, to describe a monophyletic group, defined as a group consisting of a single common ancestor and all its descendants.[The term "monophyletic group" is used in this article...]
currently defined by
Troglodytes . A study of individuals in an overlap zone between two divergent
subspeciesSubspecies in biological classification, is 1) a taxonomic rank subordinate to species, or 2) a taxonomic unit, a taxon in that rank...
of winter wren in
North AmericaNorth America is the northern continent of the Americas, situated in the Earth's northern hemisphere and in the western hemisphere. It is bordered on the north by the Arctic Ocean, on the east by the North Atlantic Ocean, on the southeast by the Caribbean Sea, and on the west by the North Pacific...
(
Troglodytes troglodytes hiemalis in Eastern North America and
Troglodytes troglodytes pacificus in Western North America), which differ substantially in song and genetics, found strong evidence for
reproductive isolationAn important concept in evolutionary biology, reproductive isolation is a category of mechanisms that prevent two or more populations from exchanging genes. The separation of the gene pools of populations, under some conditions, can lead to the genesis of distinct species...
and suggested that the
pacificus subspecies be promoted to the species level designation of
Troglodytes pacificus .
Description
The 9–10.5 cm long Wren is rufous brown above, greyer beneath, barred with darker brown and grey, even on wings and tail. The bill is dark brown, the legs pale brown. Young birds are less distinctly barred.
The
plumageFeathers are one of the epidermal growths that form the distinctive outer covering, or plumage, on birds. They are considered the most complex integumentary structures found in vertebrates. They are among the outstanding characteristics that distinguish the extant Aves from other living groups....
is subject to considerable variation, and where populations have been isolated, the variation has become fixed in one minor form or another. There are around 27
EurasiaEurasia is a large landmass covering about 52,990,000 km
2 or about 10.6% of the Earth's surface...
n subspecies of this taxonomically complex bird, with around 12 more in North America. The disputed subspecies
orii, the
Daito Winter WrenThe Daito Winter Wren is a controversial subspecies of the Winter Wren. It is known only by the type specimen, a male collected in 1938 on Minami Daitō-jima, the main island of the Daito Archipelago east of Okinawa...
, became extinct around 1940 – if it is indeed a valid taxon and not merely based on an anomaly.
Thus in the
British IslesThe British Isles are a group of islands off the northwest coast of continental Europe that include Great Britain, Ireland and numerous smaller islands. There are two sovereign states located on the islands: the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and Ireland...
, in addition to the typical bird,
T. t. indigenus, there are three distinct insular forms; one,
T. t. hirtensis, is confined to the island of
St KildaSt Kilda is an isolated archipelago 64 kilometres west-northwest of North Uist in the North Atlantic Ocean. It contains the westernmost islands of the Outer Hebrides of Scotland. The largest island is Hirta, whose sea cliffs are the highest in the United Kingdom...
, another,
T. t. zetlandicus to
ShetlandShetland is an archipelago in Scotland, off the northeast coast. The islands lie to the northeast of Orkney, from the Faroe Islands and form part of the division between the Atlantic Ocean to the west and the North Sea to the east. The total area is approximately 1,466 km²...
, and the third
T. t. fridariensis to
Fair IsleFair Isle Scottish Gaelic Eileann nan Geansaidh is an island off Scotland, lying around halfway between Shetland and the Orkney Islands. The most remote inhabited island in the United Kingdom, it is famous for its Bird Observatory and a traditional style of knitting.-Geography:Fair Isle is the...
. The
St Kilda WrenThe St Kilda Wren, Troglodytes troglodytes hirtensis, is a small passerine bird in the wren family. It is a distinctive subspecies of the Winter Wren endemic to the islands of the isolated St Kilda archipelago, in the Atlantic Ocean 64 km west of the Outer Hebrides, Scotland...
is greyer above, whiter beneath, and with more abundant bars on the back; the
Shetland WrenThe Shetland Wren, Troglodytes troglodytes zetlandicus, is a small passerine bird in the wren family. It is a subspecies of the Winter Wren endemic to the Shetland archipelago, north-east Scotland, with the exception of Fair Isle which has its own endemic subspecies, the Fair Isle...
and
Fair Isle WrenThe Fair Isle Wren, Troglodytes troglodytes fridariensis, is a small passerine bird in the wren family. It is a subspecies of the Winter Wren endemic to Fair Isle, Shetland, Scotland...
are darker.
Taxonomy
Recent taxonomies of the
Troglodytes genus have shown that winter wrens are the most distantly related of all species within
Troglodytes, and have shown that two other groups, the timberline wren (
Thryorchilus browni) and the four species within the
genusIn biology, a genus is a taxonomic unit used in the classification of living and fossil organisms. The term comes from Latin genus "descent, family, type, gender" , cognate with – genos, "race, stock, kin" ..In addition, genus is a taxonomic rank in the hierarchy In biology, a genus (plural:...
Cistothorus, are within the clade defined by all of the
Troglodytes. To make
Troglodytes monophyletic, Rice
et al. (1999) proposed that winter wrens could be placed in their own genus,
Nannus. Alternatively, as suggested by Gómez
et al. (2005) ,
Troglodytes could be made more inclusive by assigning the
Troglodytes genus to the current
Thryorchilus and
Cistothorus genera.
By studying the songs and genetics of individuals in an overlap zone between two subspecies of winter wren within North America (
Troglodytes troglodytes hiemalis in Eastern North America and
Troglodytes troglodytes pacificus in Western North America), a study by Toews and Irwin (2008) found strong evidence of
reproductive isolationAn important concept in evolutionary biology, reproductive isolation is a category of mechanisms that prevent two or more populations from exchanging genes. The separation of the gene pools of populations, under some conditions, can lead to the genesis of distinct species...
between the two. It was suggested that the
pacificus subspecies be promoted to the species level designation of
Troglodytes pacificus with the common name of ‘Pacific wren’. By applying a
molecular clockThe molecular clock is a technique in molecular evolution which uses fossil constraints and rates of molecular change to deduce the time in geologic history when two species or other taxa diverged. It is used to estimate the time of occurrence of events called speciation or radiation...
to the amount of
mitochondrial DNAMitochondrial DNA is the DNA located in organelles called mitochondria, structures within cells that convert the energy from food into a form that cells can use...
sequence divergence between the two , it was estimated that
Troglodytes pacificus and
Troglodytes troglodytes last shared a common ancestor approximately 4.3 million years ago, long before the glacial cycles of the
PleistoceneThe Pleistocene is the epoch from 2.588 million to 12 000 years BP covering the world's recent period of repeated glaciations. The name pleistocene is derived from the Greek and ....
, thought to have promoted
speciationSpeciation is the evolutionary process by which new biological species arise. The biologist Orator F. Cook seems to have been the first to coin the term 'speciation' for the splitting of lineages or 'cladogenesis,' as opposed to 'anagenesis' or 'phyletic evolution' occurring within lineages...
in many avian systems inhabiting the boreal forest of North America .
Ecology
This small, stump-tailed Wren is almost as familiar in Europe as the
RobinThe European Robin , also known as a ruddock, robinet, or simply robin, is a small insectivorous passerine bird that was formerly classed as a member of the thrush family , but is now considered to be an Old World flycatcher...
. It is mouse-like, easily lost sight of when it is hunting for food, but is found everywhere from the tops of the highest moors to the sea coast.
In North America, most of northern Europe and Asia, the winter wren nests mostly in coniferous forests, where it is often identified by its long and exuberant song. Although it is an insectivore, it can remain in moderately cold and even snowy climates by foraging for insects on substrates such as bark and fallen logs.
Its movements as it creeps or climbs are incessant rather than rapid; its short flights swift and direct but not sustained, its tiny round wings whirring as it flies from bush to bush.
It is a bird of the uplands even in winter, vanishing into the heather when snow lies thick above, a troglodyte indeed. It frequents gardens and farms, but it is quite as abundant in thick woods and in reed-beds.
When annoyed or excited its call runs into an emphatic
churr, not unlike clockwork running down. Its song is a gushing burst of sweet music, loud and emphatic. It has an enormous voice for its size, ten times louder, weight for weight, than a
cockerelThe chicken is a domesticated fowl. As one of the most common and widespread domestic animals, and with a population of more than 24 billion in 2003, there are more chickens in the world than any other bird...
.
Individuals vary in quality as well as volume of their song. The song begins with a few preliminary notes, then runs into a trill, slightly ascending, and ends in full clear notes or another trill. At all and any season the song may be heard, though most noticeable during spring. Despite its generally mouse-like behaviour, the male may sing from an exposed perch as its whole body quivers from the effort.
At night, usually in winter, it often roosts, true to its scientific name, in dark retreats, snug holes and even old nests. In hard weather it may do so in parties, either consisting of the family or of many individuals gathered together for warmth.
For the most part
insectInsects are arthropods, having a hard exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae. They are the most diverse group of animals on the planet and include more than a million species that are already described. Insects represent more than half of all...
s and
spiderSpiders are air-breathing chelicerate arthropods that have eight legs, and chelicerae modified into fangs that inject venom. They are the largest order of arachnids and rank seventh in total species diversity among all other groups of organisms...
s are its food, but in winter large pupae are taken and some seeds.
Breeding
The male Wren builds several nests, up to 6 or 7 in Europe, but fewer in North America. These are called "cock nests" but are never lined until the female chooses one to use.
The normal round nest of
grassGrasses, or more technically graminoids, are monocotyledonous, usually herbaceous plants with narrow leaves growing from the base. They include the "true grasses", of the Poaceae family, as well as the sedges and the rushes . The true grasses include cereals, bamboo and the grasses of lawns...
,
mossMosses are small, soft plants that are typically 1–10 cm tall, though some species are much larger. They commonly grow close together in clumps or mats in damp or shady locations. They do not have flowers or seeds, and their simple leaves cover the thin wiry stems...
,
lichenLichens are composite organisms consisting of a symbiotic association of a fungus with a photosynthetic partner , usually either a green alga or cyanobacterium...
s or leaves is tucked into a hole in a wall, tree trunk, crack in a rock or corner of a building, but it is often built in bushes, overhanging boughs or the litter which accumulates in branches washed by floods.
Five to eight white or slightly speckled
eggIn most birds and reptiles, an egg is the zygote, resulting from fertilization of the ovum. To enable incubation the egg is usually kept within a favourable temperature range as it nourishes and protects the growing embryo. When the embryo is adequately developed it breaks out of the egg in the...
s are laid in April, and second broods are reared. The eggs of the St. Kilda Wren are marginally larger and often more boldly spotted; six is the usual number.
Wrens are highly polygynous, that is to say a male can have, at any one time, more than one female with an active nest on his territory. An active nest is one in which there are eggs or nestlings. A male has been recorded with four females breeding on his territory. Bigamy and trigamy are the most common forms of polygyny.
Myths and legends
In the European folklore the Wren is the King of the Birds. According a fable of
AesopAesop , known only for the genre of fables ascribed to him, was by tradition a slave who was a contemporary of Croesus and Peisistratus in the mid-sixth century BC in ancient Greece.-Fables:The various collections that go under the rubric "Aesop's Fables" are still taught as moral...
, long ago the birds held a contest to see who could fly the highest; this one should become the King of the Birds. At first it looked as though the
EagleEagles are large birds of prey which are members of the bird family Accipitridae, and belong to several genera which are not necessarily closely related to each other. Most of the more than 60 species occur in Eurasia and Africa...
would win easily. But just as the Eagle began to tire, the Wren, which had hidden under the Eagle's tail feathers, crept out, soared far above and shouted: "I'm the King!" Thus the Wren proved that cleverness is better than strength. The Wren's majesty is recognized in such stories as the
Grimm Brothers'The Brothers Grimm , Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm , were German academics who were best known for publishing collections of folk tales and fairy tales and for their work in linguistics, relating to how the sounds in words shift over time .They are among the best known story...
The Willow-Wren and the Bear. Aristoteles and
PlutarchPlutarch, born Plutarchos then, on his becoming a Roman citizen, Lucius Mestrius Plutarchus , c. AD 46 – 120, was a Greek historian, biographer, essayist, and Middle Platonist known primarily for his Parallel Lives and Moralia...
called the Wren
basileus (king) and
basiliskos (little king). In Japan the Wren is also calling King of the Winds.
It was a sacred bird to the Druids, who considered it "supreme among all the birds", and used its musical notes for divination. The shape-shifting Fairy Queen took the form of a Wren, known as "Jenny Wren" in nursery rhymes. A Wren's feather was thought to be a charm against disaster or drowning.
The Wren also features in the legend of
Saint StephenSaint Stephen , known as the Protomartyr of Christianity, is venerated as a saint in the Roman Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran and Eastern Orthodox Churches. Stephen means "wreath" or "crown" in Greek...
, the first Christian
martyrA martyr is somebody who suffers persecution and death for refusing to renounce a belief, usually religious.-Meaning:...
, who supposedly was betrayed by the noisy bird as he attempted to hide from his enemies. Traditionally, St. Stephen's Day (26 December) has been commemorated by
Hunting the Wren, wherein young
WrenboysWrenboys are mummers who celebrate the Wren in various parts of Ireland on St. Stephen's Day by dressing up in straw masks and colourful clothing and, accompanied by traditional céilí music bands, parade through the towns and villages...
would catch the bird and then ritually parade it around town, as described in the traditional Wren Song.
The Wren, the Wren, the king of all birds, St. Stephen’s day was caught in the furze. Although he is little, his family’s great, I pray you, good landlady, give us a treat. 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 BoughThe Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion is a wide-ranging, comparative study of mythology and religion, written by Scottish anthropologist Sir James George Frazer . It first was published in two volumes in 1890; the third edition, published 1906–15, comprised twelve volumes...
.
In popular culture
- In The Jungle Book
The Jungle Book is a collection of stories written by Rudyard Kipling. The stories were first published in magazines in 1893–4. The original publications contained illustrations, some by Rudyard's father, John Lockwood Kipling. Kipling was born in India and spent the first six years of his...
by Rudyard KiplingRudyard Kipling was a British author and poet. Born in Bombay, British India, he is best known for his works of fiction The Jungle Book , Kim , many short stories, including The Man Who Would Be King ; and his poems, including...
, Limmershin, the Winter Wren, is the narrator of the "The White SealPinnipeds or fin-footed mammals are a widely distributed and diverse group of semi-aquatic marine mammals comprising the families Odobenidae , Otariidae , and Phocidae...
" story .
- The German
German is a West Germanic language, thus related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. It is one of the world's major languages and the most widely spoken first language in the European Union. Around the world, German is spoken by approximately 105 million native speakers and also by...
saying "jemand freut sich wie ein Zaunkönig" means "be joyful" .
External links