For me, male Marsh Wrens in springtime epitomize the word “frenzied” as they flit from cattail to cattail defending nesting territory, attracting and mating with multiple females and building many “dummy” nests. And their singing is almost constant.
Parts of Antelope Island are simply covered with tiny purple flowers right now and I often look for opportunities to photograph birds in such a setting.
This week I was finally able to get some decent images of Marsh Wrens. Canon 7D, 1/2000, f/8, ISO 400, 500 f/4, 1.4 tc In the past these birds have always been buried too deeply in vegetation for me to get shots I liked but a couple of days ago they finally cooperated with me. Canon 7D, 1/1600, f/8, ISO 400, 500 f/4, 1.4 tc Marsh Wrens have incredibly interesting behaviors. For example, western males must learn up to 200 different songs (eastern birds only learn about 50). Perhaps that’s why these males sing so much – it would take a lot of practice to learn that many “tunes”. Canon 7D, 1/1600, f/8, ISO 400, 500 f/4, 1.4 tc These birds are extremely territorial and aggressive. They are polygynous (males mate with multiple females) and in order to attract females the male builds from 6 to 22 “dummy” nests for every one that is actually used to raise a brood of chicks. We could see several of these nests buried in the cattails along the refuge road. Canon 7D, 1/2500, f/7.1, ISO 400, 500 f/4, 1.4 tc According to the Bear River Blog many of these nests were destroyed by our recent stormy weather and heavy rains so many of these males have had to start over. Canon 7D, 1/2000, f/8, ISO 400, 500 f/4, 1.4 tc Marsh Wrens of both sexes regularly destroy eggs and chicks of other birds near their territories, including those of…
