FAMILY Troglodytidte 



Winter Wren The Winter Wren is the most gi 

 A<nnni5^m^/tJ s j n g er M we jj ag ^ gnujiggt member of hi* 



April aoth family. The species is decidedly boreal, a 

 common resident of the Canadian zone, and 

 breeds from Alberta to Newfoundland, southward to 

 Minnesota, the mountain regions of New York and New 

 England, and along the Alleghanies to North Carolina. 

 To hear its song one must journey to the North Woods oi 

 the higher mountains where the lively, dancing melody 

 reverberates through the spruce forests like the tinkling of 

 silver bells. The appearance of the bird is simil, 

 that of the House Wren; a fluffy little ball of mottled 

 brown feathers, with a perked up tail and a bobbing 1 

 all too tiny to belong to a song so loud and ringing, yet it 

 is indeed the inimitable Winter Wren which sings. The 

 colored markings of this species differ from those of tin- 

 House Wren in the following particulars; upper parts a 

 deeper brown, the barring especially on the under part.- 

 much more distinct, the short line over and back of the 

 eye pale brown. The short tail also is usually held higher 

 than that of the House Wren. Female similarly marked. 

 The nest constructed of tiny twigs, mosses, and lichens 

 has a circular opening and is lined with moss, hair, and 

 feathers; it is most often lodged in the roots of an upturned 

 tree or the cavity of an old log. Egg, cream white finely 

 flecked with sienna brown and lavender, sometimes very 

 scantily marked. 



Here is a record of the song taken on the slopes of Mt. 

 Mansfield, Vt., on July 10, 1908, the high C is the highest 

 on the piano keyboard, and the rapidity with which the 

 song was delivered was almost incredible. 



It is quite evident that the initial note of the various 

 trills is accented and sustained a trifle longer than the 

 succeeding reiterated lower-pitched notes. That is the 

 distinguishing character of this Wren's song, and along 



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