Billable Hours

A new, male House Wren has moved into our yard and is taking advantage of the fact that the Great Blue Heron weathervane on our barn makes a perfect singing perch, especially its bill. Since he does not yet have a mate, he spends a lot of “billable hours” singing to attract one.

We have several bird houses placed around the barn, which is a good thing, since male House Wrens, as part of their courtship, stuff several as many nesting holes as they can find with twigs. When a female shows up she selects one of these “dummy nests”, adds a lining and lays the eggs.

To make matters more interesting, there is already a pair of wrens nesting on one side of the barn. The male from that pair frequently sings to defend his territory from this newcomer. So basically they egg one another on. Bottom line is that we have stereo wrens. Hope Mr. Newcomer gets a mate soon.