I checked the Minnesota Ornithologists' Union (MOU) website and found that there have been dozens and dozens of Carolina wrens reported in Minnesota since the 1920s, most in fall and winter. This habit is costly in severe winters, when "pushy" wrens simply die off, but well-stocked feeders help them stay alive. What was this bird doing here, so far out of its normal range? According to the Nature Conservancy on its Cool Green Science site, this species advances and recedes over the years depending on the severity of the winters. To compare it with wrens we normally see, a Carolina wren is 5½ inches long, while a house wren runs 4¾ inches, a discernible size difference. It had a "spunky" attitude, hopping assertively around on the ground, not moving away when bigger birds, like blue jays, landed nearby.Ī field guide to birds confirmed that this was a Carolina wren, more at home in the southeastern United States than in St. Most of us would have guessed that it was a wren, with its long deeply cocked tail, just like a house wren.
It definitely was not a bird that regularly dwells in Minnesota. The bird had a pouter pigeon shape and warm cinnamon-colored feathers, with a dramatic white line above its eyes, making him stand out from the usual birds in the backyard. As near as I can tell, the small, plump bird that showed up under my feeders in early November was hundreds of miles from home.
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