House wren Facts
House wren Facts
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| Interesting House wren Facts: |
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| House wren can reach 4.3 to 5.1 inches in length and 0.35 to 0.42 ounces of weight. |
| Upper part of the body is covered with grayish-brown or reddish-brown plumage. Ventral parts of the body are brown, light grey or white. Tail and wings are covered with black bars. Males and females look alike. |
| House wren has long, thin beak, short wings and short, upright tail. |
| House wren is an insectivore. Its diet is based on beetles, spiders, earwigs, flies, daddy longlegs, leafhoppers and springtails. |
| House wrens from the northern parts of the North America migrate toward the south during September and October. They return to the breeding grounds in April and May. |
| Hawks and owls are predators of adult house wrens. Cats, raccoons, squirrels, rats, opossums and snakes eat eggs and young chicks. |
| House wren produces bubbly songs that can be heard during the breeding season. |
| House wren is territorial and aggressive during the breeding season. Pair of birds will destroy eggs (pierce an eggshell) in the nearby nests, or damage the nest by adding numerous sticks. |
| House wren builds nest farther from other males, except during the first breeding season. Young, inexperienced males build their first nest close to older males to watch and learn basic tricks required for the successful nesting. |
| Female selects one out of many nests that male started to build. Nests of house wren are made of sticks and lined with leaves, wool, feathers, snakeskin and pieces of plastic. Nests also contain spider's eggs which eliminate mites (nest parasites of house wrens) after hatching. |
| House wrens nest in the cavities, woodpecker holes, abandoned nests of swallows or hornets or use hats, shoes, tin cans, flower pots and bird houses for nesting. |
| Nesting takes place 6 weeks after returning to the breeding grounds or from October to December in the southern part of their range (during the rainy season, when food is abundant). |
| Female lays 3 to 10, white, pinkish or grayish eggs covered with reddish-brown spots that hatch after 9 to 16 days. Male provides food for the female during the period of incubation. |
| Chicks are naked, blind and helpless at birth. Both parents provide food for their offspring. Young birds are ready to leave the nest 15 to 17 days after hatching. |
| House wren can survive around 9 years in the wild. |
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