If you ask me what I think about Wrens, I’ll tell you this, these little birds strut around like they own the place. They have a kind of boldness you would not expect from something so tiny, with personality by the bucketload, and a streak of sassiness that makes me smile every time I see one hopping around, looking like it has important business to attend to and not much time in which to get it done.
While both Birdsoftheworld.org and Wikipedia reports ninety six (96) species worldwide, my Birds of Panamá field guide gives a list of twenty two(22) species found locally in Panamá. That is an impressive number, almost a quarter of the world’s Wrens can be found right here in Panamá.
So far I have been fortunate to have come across 5 species and as I continue to observe them I am increasingly inspired to try and find all 22 species in Panamá as well as looking beyond for the others.
The House Wren was my first introduction to the clan and I suspect the first Wren species most persons would have seen also, they are literally all over the place hopping around like they had a never-ending to-do list, pausing just long enough to seemingly scold me for pointing a camera its way.
The Bay Wren was the second Wren species to captivate my eyes and mind. That mix of chestnut brown and bold black-and-white markings made it look like it had stepped out in formal wear while the rest of the forest was in camouflage. It perched just long enough for me to catch my breath and think, “Well, now that’s a bird that knows it looks good.” I would have described the Bay Wren as my “Bird of the day” in a previous post here.
The Song Wren is another charmer. If the House Wren was busy and the Bay Wren stylish, the Song Wren was pure poetry. I didn’t hear it sing but the way it moved around on the forest floor was just mesmerising. Its quick occasional darting stares in my direction carried all the suspicion of a security guard watching a stranger in the lobby.
The Rufous and White Wren stepped out of the dark undergrowth and paid no attention to us. We must have looked like clumsy trespassers in its green neighbourhood, yet it hardly gave us a glance. It just poked around for food, business as usual, while we froze less than two meters away, hoping not to ruin the moment.
The White-breasted Wren was more reserved, keeping close to the shadows, flashing a glimpse of its pale chest before disappearing again, like a shy performer taking a single bow.
And now, sitting at the top of my to see next list, is probably the most unusually coloured member of the entire wren family, and one that, thankfully, calls Panamá home. With its crisp white head and underparts set against darker wings and back, it stands out in a family best known for blending into the shadows. After five mostly brown wrens, the White-Headed Wren feels like the perfect next chapter in the quest for all of Panama’s twenty two Wren species.
Wrens are extremely loud little birds. They may be over-compensating. I have seen Bay Wren,
Plain Wren, Rufous-and-white Wren, Rufous-breasted Wren, Black-bellied Wren, Buff-breasted Wren, Song Wren, Southern Nightingale-wren, and White-breasted Wood-wren in Panama. I agree with Fitzroy: they are all characters!