THE COMMON WREN 



Troglodytes parvulus 



Few birds are better known or more widely dis- 

 tributed than this diminutive species. It may be 

 said to be generally distributed throughout the 

 British Islands, from the Scilly Islands in the south 

 to the Shetlands in the north, although in St. Kilda 

 it is replaced by a closely allied form. South of the 

 Arctic Circle the Common Wren ranges over the 

 greater part of continental Europe and the western 

 portions of Northern Africa, including Madeira and 

 the Canaries. Eastwards it is found in Asia Minor, 

 the north of Palestine, and in the north of Persia, 

 but its limits in this direction are difficult to deter- 

 mine, owing to the presence of various climatic races 

 or closely allied species. Indeed in one form or 

 another the Wren is found over a very great part of 

 Asia and North America, but the consideration of 

 these races or species need not concern us further. 



There can be little or no doubt that the Wren, 



wherever found in our area, is a resident bird. 



Although nothing nearly so tame and familiar as 



the Robin, the present species ranks only second to 

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