The wren and its risky den: Trouble in blizzards

Written by Jack Sanders
Thursday, 18 February 2010 13:40

Some comments from a reader and the recent snows got me thinking about the Carolina Wren, that high-energy songster that seems so at home in our neck of the woods each winter.

It wasn’t always so. Like other birds now common year round, the Carolina Wren was originally a southerner, rarely if ever seen in Connecticut or New York. According to Tom Baptist and Joseph Zeranski, authors of  “Connecticut Birds,” this species was not even recorded in the state until 1878 and wasn’t nesting here until 1895. But throughout the 20th Century, their numbers have been increasing —  presumably as the winters have gotten milder.

Winter, however, can still be tough on Carolinas, although it’s snow, not cold, that is the problem. These birds spend the night in roosts close to the ground —  in stone walls, under piles of brush, etc.   The wren family is called Troglodytidae — cave-dweller — from its tendency to seek protection in cozy, low spaces.

However, if a heavy enough snow comes and they’re “in bed,” the Carolinas get trapped and may die of starvation.

In the winter of 1995-96, our area had the most snow of any winter in the 20th Century. A total of 111 inches fell on Ridgefield. In January 1996, according to Dr. Mel Goldstein, there were 36 inches of snow on the ground!

The Carolina Wren population was decimated. Many people accustomed to having these wrens at their feeders waited years before they re-established themselves hereabouts. It’s likely that the recent storms in the Mid-Atlantic states may have killed countless Carolina Wrens. Here, there hasn’t been enough snow to cause a problem.

We have a couple of Carolinas visiting the feeder, probably a pair. Before dawn each morning, the male is singing his distinctive territorial song that some liken to “teakettle, teakettle, teakettle,” although the male has three dozen or so songs it can sing. Its voice is amazingly loud and rich for a bird so small.

These birds are feisty, lively and fun to watch on seed and suet feeders. They are not too fearful of people and often take advantage of our “facilities.” About six years ago, Diana Gray of Wilton had a Carolina Wren that roosted in her garage all winter. “Somehow,” Diana writes, “it noticed that, when I came home from work, the garage would be left open until my husband got in. Then we closed the electronic door. We never noticed the bird coming in, nor did it give away its presence if we went into the garage to bring in firewood. The next morning, the bird would be fluttering around by the garage door windows, ready to go.

“He did that just one winter. I guess his progeny didn’t catch on.”

Buffleheads

Peter Taylor writes, “It’s naturally inspiring to note the local return of many forms of wildlife, including many bird species, to the area. Among several species of waterfowl I have seen more of since I’ve been back east the past two years (I was living in bird-rich Guyana in South America) are Bufflehead ducks, some residing inland during the colder months. One place I’ve seen them was just across the New Canaan line in Pound Ridge, N.Y. They were using the western edge of Siskowit Reservoir as viewed from East Woods Road. It’s a rich area for wildlife generally. I have even seen otter there during the day out on the ice.

“On two occasions in October and November 2009 before the reservoir froze over, I saw six or seven Buffleheads, all but perhaps one, males. They were very active, swimming, flying, diving, feeding off the lake bottom.”

Coming up

2010 Connecticut State of the Birds, with Connecticut Audubon biologist Twan Leenders, Thursday, Feb. 18, 7 p.m., free, Western Connecticut Bird Club, at Kensington Green, 655 Main Street, Southbury, klfischer2 @ sbcglobal.net.

Eagles In Alaska, photography by Dan Burns, Saturday, Feb. 20, 2 p.m., $4/$2, Audubon Greenwich, 613 Riversville Road, 203- 869-5272 x230, Greenwich.audubon.org.

Field Trip to Edith Read Sanctuary (Playland) and Marshlands Conservancy, Rye, with Bedford Audubon Naturalist Tait Johansson, Thursday, Feb. 25, 8:45 a.m. to 2 p.m., reserve jebecker @ bedfordaudubon.org or 914-232-4806.  bedfordaudubon.org

Saturday Morning Bird Walks with Luke Tiller, Feb. 20,  Stamford/Greenwich Hotspots; Feb. 27,Stratford/Milford Tour; to register, sunrisebirding.com/walks.htm; 203- 453-6724, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

First Sundays, birding at Greenwich Point with Meredith Sampson of Wild Wings, and other guides, 203-637-9822.

Copyright 2010 by Jack Sanders. Send sightings or comments to: jackfsanders [at sign] yahoo.com, or to Bird Notes, Box 1019, Ridgefield, CT 06877; or call 203-438-1183, extension BIRD (2473), and leave a message with your report, spelling your first and last names and telling us your town. If you need help identifying a bird, try your local nature center. If you find an injured bird, call wildlife rehabilitator Darlene Wimbrow of Redding, 203-438-0618, Wildlife in Crisis of Weston, 203-544-9913, or Wild Wings of Greenwich, 203-637-9822. The columnist’s website is www. sandersbooks. com.

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