668 MICHIGAN BIRD LIFE. 
of injurious insects which are attacking the crops and to delight us with 
his wonderful song. 
TECHNICAL DESCRIPTION. 
Adult: Entire upper parts, including wings and tail, bright rusty brown; greater and 
middle wing-coverts tipped with whitish, forming two white bars; under parts white, 
thickly marked with spots, dashes and streaks of black, except on the chin, throat and 
middle of belly, which are unspotted; bill mostly black, the base of lower mandible yellow; 
iris yellow. In autumn all the white is likely to be buffy. Sexes alike. 
Length 10.50 to 12 inches; wing 4.10 to 4.60; tail 5 to 5.75; culmen .90 to 1.10. 
Family 67. TROGLODYTIDA:. Wrens. 
Our six species may be separated by the following key: 
KEY TO SPECIES. 
A. Upper parts with white or whitish streaks. B, BB. 
B. Both top of head and back with whitish streaks; culmen not over 
#inch. Short-billed Marsh Wren. No. 307. 
BB. Back alone with whitish streaks; culmen over 2 inch. Long- 
billed Marsh Wren. No. 308. 
AA. Upper parts without whitish streaks. C, CC. 
C. A conspicuous white stripe over and behind the eye; culmen over 
Zinch. D, DD. 
D. Outer tail-feathers conspicuously marked with white toward 
tips. Bewick’s Wren, No. 304. 
DD. Outer tail-feathers without white. Carolina Wren. No. 303. 
CC. Light line behind eye inconspicuous or wanting; culmen under } 
inch. E, EE. 
E. Under parts whitish with few or no bars except on flanks; tail 
over 14 inch. House Wren. No. 305. 
EK. Under parts brownish, thickly barred with black; tail 14 
inch or less. Winter Wren. No. 306. 
303. Carolina Wren. Thryothorus ludovicianus ludovicianus (Lath.). (718) 
Synonyms: Mocking Wren, Great Carolina Wren, Louisiana Wren.—Sylvia ludoviciana, 
Lath., 1790.—Troglodytes ludovicianus, Bonap., 1824, Nutt., 1832, Aud., 1841.—Certhia 
ludoviciana, Wils., 1810.—Thryothorus ludovicianus, Bonap., 1838, A. O. U. Check-list, 
1886, and most subsequent writers. 
Largest of our wrens, about twice as heavy as the House Wren, which 
it closely resembles in color, proportions and action; the Carolina Wren, 
however, in addition to its much greater size, has a conspicuous white line 
over and behind the eye and is decidedly more reddish or rusty on the 
back and rump than any of our other wrens. 
Distribution.—Eastern United States, north to southern New York, 
southern Michigan and southern Nebraska; west to the Plains. Rare 
or casual in southern New England and southern Ontario. Resident 
nearly throughout its range. 
This doubtless is the least common of all the wrens found in the state; 
indeed it is doubtful if it should be considered more than a strageler. 
Apparently it has been taken about a dozen times within our limits. Mr. 
