162 HABITS AND MANNERS OF THE ROCK WREN 



insects, and sometimes hops over the roofs of cabins and mills, 

 and not infrequently chooses the ridge as a convenient place 

 from which to serenade its mate. It has a curious, rapidly 

 repeated note, that sounds like the whirring of wings ; its song 

 is very beautiful, louder and sweeter than that of tbe House 

 Wren, though not as varied. While singing, the bird usually 

 perches on the top of a heap of stones, and stands erect, with 

 head thrown up, like the Carolina Wren. At such times it is 

 quite timid, and if alarmed, instantly ceases the song and looks 

 anxiously around, bobbing itself up and down every little 

 while, like the Dipper, and presently creeps down into the 

 stone-heap. Late in autumn its feathers become much worn 

 from constant creeping among the rocks. In Septeinber it 

 disappears." 



The Eock Wren abounds in suitable situations throughout 

 the Colorado Basin, where its vivacious behavior and load 

 notes render it conspicuous among the other smaller plainly clad 

 species. It is found in most situations, whether wooded or 

 open, but evidently prefers rocky places, full of chinks and 

 crannies, where it creeps furtively about like a mouse, only 

 with greater agility, or skips and flutters from stone to stone. 

 The greater portion of its habitat being still unsettled, the bird 

 thus frequenting wild and desolate places has acquired a repu- 

 tation for shyness and love of seclusion; but there is every 

 reason to suppose that in the course of time, should the coun- 

 try ever grow populous, it will become as familiar as the House 

 Wren. In the West, Parkman's Wren, which is nothing but 

 a variety of the sociable little aedon, continues to be quite as 

 retiring and solitary a bird as the Eock Wren. In the case of 

 the latter, we already have the premonitory signs of the semi- 

 domestication of which the bird is susceptible ; it often comes 

 about the miner's or the squatter's cabin, even building its nest 

 in the chinks of the logs ; and with equal readiness haunts the 

 shrubbery of gardens in many of the western towns. It would 

 make a very desirable addition to our " household birds ". 



The materials which compose the Eock Wren's nest are very 

 miscellaneous some general term like " rubbish " would best 

 express the state of the case. Sometimes a nest is found to be 

 composed almost entirely of some single substance that hap- 

 pened readily available ; but it is oftener built of a variety of 

 materials any that come handy sticks, bark-strips, weeds, 

 grasses, moss, hair, wool, &c. The sites selected are quite as 



