How the Tide Wrens Acquired Summer Quarters 13 



it moved to the next point with such regularity that, although 

 it sometimes missed certain stations, I could anchor the canoe 

 at a likely place and be reasonably sure of having the bird 

 stop, sometimes within five feet of me, and sing on the cattail 

 I had selected. I thought that I could detect competition in 

 the singing of the two wrens, for the louder the one bird sang 

 the louder the other became, and if one appeared to concen- 

 trate on a phrase the other often repeated it. Obviously it was 

 serious business. Perhaps its quality and strength might be 

 of much importance in the securing of a mate. 



Each bird put everything into the song, singing with its 

 head pointed to the sky, its long slender bill wide open, its 

 brown body shaking with the effort. The perky tail stood 

 erect or tipped forward toward the bird's back. Now and 

 then the wren would face a new direction and publish its 

 claim to the territory. Often one bird abruptly ceased sing- 

 ing, flew a few feet, searched for food, then as abruptly flew 

 to a high cattail and began again. Sometimes, even before 

 the females appeared and before regular nest work began, 

 a male would prowl around with a billful of cattail down as 

 if to say "Come along, old girl, I'm ready to start house 

 building." Most of the time they moved and sang, nervously 

 fed or pretended to feed, and then took a new station to 

 resume the performance. While they sang, the wind would 

 ruffle their soft feathers. 



The movements of the birds appeared jerky and nervous 

 but always forceful. They were in a militant mood. Neither 

 of them ever considered a policy of appeasement when they 

 were engaged in territorial arguments. Each had definite 

 ideas as to its rightful leasehold and would fight to defend 

 it. Each moved about constantly with its claws clinging to a 

 cattail stalk or to the head and releasing a fine spray of cat- 

 tail down to be scattered by the wind. Invariably with the 

 movements came their burst of discordant but almost frenzied 

 song. 



