General

Bewick's Wren: Small wren with unstreaked, gray to red-brown upperparts and plain white underparts. White eyebrows are conspicuous. Tail is long and white-edged with dark bars. Eastern populations are red-brown, Northwestern birds are more brown, and Western Interior birds are gray-brown. Sexes are similar.

Range and Habitat

Bewick's Wren: Resident from British Columbia south to Baja California and east to Arkansas. Birds breeding further north and east migrate to the western Gulf Coast states for the winter. Preferred habitats include thickets, brush piles, hedgerows, open woodlands, and scrubby areas, often near streams.

Breeding and Nesting

Bewick's Wren: Four to eleven white eggs, flecked with purple, brown, and gray, are laid in a stick nest lined with leaves, grass, and feathers, and built in almost any available cavity, including a woodpecker hole, tin can, coat pocket or sleeve, basket, tool shed, or brush pile. Incubation ranges from 12 to 14 days and is carried out by the female.

Foraging and Feeding

Bewick's Wren: Diet consists mostly of insects and spiders; forages on the ground and in trees.

Readily Eats

Suet, Nuts

Vocalization

Bewick's Wren: Male sings "chip, chip, chip, de-da-ah, tee-dee". The call is a flat "jipp."

Similar Species

Bewick's Wren: House and Rock Wrens lack white eyebrows.