Overview
Wrentit: Small, noisy songbird with dark gray-brown upperparts, thick streaked, red-brown to buff-brown underparts. Bill is short and black. Tail is very long and dark. Eyes are creamy white, bill is short and gray. Legs and feet are gray. Northern birds have darker upperparts than southern birds.
Range and Habitat
Wrentit: Resident from the Columbia River on the northern border of Oregon southward along coastal chaparral into Baja California and into the Sierra Nevada foothills of California. Chaparral, shrubs, and brush are preferred habitats.
Topo Map:
Perching-like Body
Listen to Call
Voice Text
"pit-pit-pit-tr-r-r-r-r-r-r-r", "peep-peep-peep-pee-pee-peepeepeepeprrr"
Interesting Facts
The Wrentit was first described in 1845 by William Gambel, an American naturalist and collector.
It used to be considered the sole member of the family Chamaeidae, but genetic studies show that it is the only American representative of the large Old World family of babblers, Timaliidae.
Pairs mate for life, and may be together for more than 12 years. Both sexes incubate and sing to defend the territory.
Their vibrant song is likened to the sound of a "bouncing ball" and is easily heard and recognized. In fact, they are more often heard than seen.
Bird Term Glossary
Author
Gary Owen Dick
Artist
Imran Kahn
.