Pacific Wren

Pacific Wrens, like most other birds, prefer to be heard and not seen. Their burbling song is amazingly complex, and they belt it out all year long from the understories of coniferous and old-growth forests. They also chat among themselves with their click! click! click! call. All birds use their songs to attract mates and claim territory. It’s likely that complex songs evolve as birds compete with each other; the prettiest songs attract the lady birds and the loudest ones scare other birds away from their territory.

Pacific Wrens eat almost entirely insects and spiders, and can survive in the winter by probing in crevices and under bark for sluggish overwintering arthropods. A male, when courting a female, will construct several nests, then give his mate a tour and let her choose which one she prefers. The nests are so cleverly hidden that even when researchers have narrowed it down to a square meter of forest floor, they still are nearly impossible to find.

This bird I saw at Whatcom Falls Park in Bellingham, Washington, on November 13.