Carolina Wren

Immature Carolina

Bird identification is a weak area for me but I was confident when I photographed the Carolina wren at our feeder.  It had a long white eye bar extending back on the neck and a buff underbelly versus a white belly of the Bewick's wren.  Even more diagnostic were the decorations on its legs, identifying it as tagged by Dan Zapata who is studying them along Bull Creek.  I sent him the picture and here is his reply.

Mature Carolina

"Absolutely amazing! That is Narcissus (my favorite wren)!  I thought he was gone. I banded him, mapped his territory, but never saw him again. I thought he was predated or just left the area, but I am glad to know he is still around. He was a single wren when I banded him, I wonder if he found a mate."  He went on to say he banded it a half mile from our feeder.

I asked him to describe his research.  "My study focuses on studying sex-specific territoriality in Carolina wrens. This is achieved by the use of playback experiments in which I place loudspeakers within their territories and simulate male, female, and male/female intrusions, to check how males and females respond differently to intruders in regards to sex, as a means to determine if they cooperate at deterring intruders regardless of sex or if they specifically aim to attack individuals of the same sex."

Carolina nest 2013

According to All About Birds "Unlike other wren species in its genus, only the male Carolina wren sings the loud song. One captive male Carolina wren sang nearly 3,000 times in a single day."  Once they hook up they "are versatile nesters, making use of discarded flowerpots, mailboxes, propane-tank covers, and a variety of other items."  This nest was on a shelf in our century old barn.

Dan is scheduled to give a presentation on his thesis work for the Greater Ozarks Audubon Society on May 19th, 2022.