INSESSQRES.
SCJNSOBES.
CERTH1AJDÆ.
T H E W R EN ,
Sylvia troglodytes, The Wren, - Penn. Brifi-Zoal, vob k p. .5165*41*.
Motacilla „ k Common Mont. Olnitfir'Blct»'
,, , The ,} BEWïcfc, Brit'. Birds/ tot. i. p. ^
Troglodytes vulgaris, Common Feem, Brit.'Arirps 73.
,, Europteus ,> ' Órnith. vbT«- i. p. ,39.0. -
•. -rat» ,, i, & . dfefcSrNS, Brit. Vert. p. -lS&i*-
,, ,, Thé ~ 'W ' ’ G"ó®£B, Birds of Éürope/.pt- V."
Sylvia troglodyte's, - Troglodyte oMtinaire, Temm. Man. d,Otnith.;roMuPp*33Si
Troglodytes vulgiiris, if~ Bapplt. p. 160.
Generic Characters.—Beak very slender, slightly curved^ pointed,'the edges
of the mandibles entire, Without any depression or ,notch, Nostrils oval, éö-
vered with a ffiembrané. Wings very short,'Concave, rounded ; the fust feather
rather short, the fourth Or fifth feather the longest. Tail short; " Fdet rather
long, slender; the middle toe united at the base to the,outer toe, but not to the
inner toe.
Oub little established favourite,- the Wren, was formerly
included among the Warblers; but the similarity in the
habits, and the general resemblance in the colours of the
plumage of»,?c'ertam speciés, limited in numbers, but distributed
over Europe, Asia, Africa, and America, have induced
modern ornithologists to adopt the genus Troglodytes, first
proposed for them by Baron Cuvier ; and M. Temminck, as
will be seen by the quotation , from his Supplement, coincides
in the propriety of this view.
* Among our small birds there, is scarcely one that is better
known, or mooeè secure. bÿ‘privilege, than the little W ren ;
frequenting gardens closer-to ' our houses, and occasionally
taking shelter in out-buildings1, its> confidence, like that of the
Robin, appears tfi&have- induced- and insured its protection.
I t «creeps mouse-like from our sight*-through hedges and underwood;
occasionally only taking wing for a short distance;
and again disappears from our views This little bird sings
throughout. - th e . greater part of the year with a, shrill and
lively strain, and' even
“ When-’Mcles hang dripping from the rock,
Pipes’ his perennial* lay 'S(
enduring- ,a frosty-winter1«;'night by uniting and roosting in
company in some sheltered hóle of a wall or under thatch.
Sir William Jardine and Mr. Selby hoth mention the cir-
âéumstancèî^of several, of these diminutive birds passing the
•night?$©gether in the.same aperture; and the Hon. W . Herr
bert says-.théirin, severe weather they frequently roost in cowhouses,
where’ thé Confined cattle keep them warm.
The Wren begins to make a nest early in spring, and
sometimes fixes it under_the thatch of à building, against the
side of a moss-covered tree, or close to an impending bank
that secures, it from the rain ;• but what is remarkable, says
Montagu, “ the materials of the nest are generally adapted
to the place : if built against’ the side.'of a hayrick, it is
composed of hay ; if against the side of a tree covered with
M 2