Wrens are a

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

, Troglodytidae, of small brown

passerine A passerine () is any bird of the order Passeriformes (; from Latin 'sparrow' and '-shaped') which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds, passerines generally have an anisodactyl arrangement of their ...

birds. The family includes 96

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

and is divided into 19

genera Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family as used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In binomial nomenclature, the genus name forms the first part of the binomial s ...

. All species are restricted to the

New World The term "New World" is used to describe the majority of lands of Earth's Western Hemisphere, particularly the Americas, and sometimes Oceania."America." ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (). McArthur, Tom, ed., 1992. New York: ...

except for the

Eurasian wren The Eurasian wren (''Troglodytes troglodytes'') or northern wren is a very small insectivorous bird, and the only member of the wren family Troglodytidae found in Eurasia and Africa (Maghreb). In Anglophone Europe, it is commonly known simply as ...

that is widely distributed in the

Old World The "Old World" () is a term for Afro-Eurasia coined by Europeans after 1493, when they became aware of the existence of the Americas. It is used to contrast the continents of Africa, Europe, and Asia in the Eastern Hemisphere, previously ...

. In Anglophone regions, the Eurasian wren is commonly known simply as the "wren", as it is the originator of the name. The name ''wren'' has been applied to other, unrelated birds, particularly the New Zealand wrens (

Acanthisittidae The New Zealand wrens are a family (Acanthisittidae) of tiny passerines endemic to New Zealand. They were represented by seven Holocene species in four or five genera, although only two species in two genera survive today. They are understood to ...

) and the Australian wrens (

Maluridae The Australasian wrens are a family, Maluridae, of small, insectivorous passerine birds endemic to Australia and New Guinea. While commonly known as wrens, they are unrelated to the true wrens. The family comprises 32 species (including sixteen ...

). Most wrens are visually inconspicuous though they have loud and often complex songs. Exceptions include the relatively large members of the genus ''

Campylorhynchus ''Campylorhynchus'' is a genus of wrens, which has at least 15 described species. At 17–22 cm (6.8-8.7 in) long, these are the largest-bodied of wrens, including the largest species, the giant wren. Member species are found in South A ...

'', which can be quite bold in their behaviour. Wrens have short wings that are barred in most species, and they often hold their tails upright. Wrens are primarily

insectivorous A robber fly eating a hoverfly An insectivore is a carnivorous animal or plant which eats insects. An alternative term is entomophage, which can also refer to the human practice of eating insects. The first vertebrate insectivores we ...

, eating insects, spiders and other small

invertebrate Invertebrates are animals that neither develop nor retain a vertebral column (commonly known as a ''spine'' or ''backbone''), which evolved from the notochord. It is a paraphyletic grouping including all animals excluding the chordata, chordate s ...

s, but many species also eat vegetable matter and some eat small frogs and lizards.

Etymology and usage

The English name "wren" derives from and , attested (as ) very early, in an eighth-century gloss. It is

cognate In historical linguistics, cognates or lexical cognates are sets of words that have been inherited in direct descent from an etymological ancestor in a common parent language. Because language change can have radical effects on both the s ...

to , , and (the latter two including an additional diminutive ''-ilan'' suffix). The Icelandic name is attested in Old Icelandic (

Edda "Edda" (; Old Norse ''Edda'', plural ''Eddur'') is an Old Norse term that has been applied by modern scholars to the collective of two Medieval Icelandic literary works: what is now known as the ''Prose Edda'' and an older collection of poems ( ...

ic) as . This points to a

Common Germanic Proto-Germanic (abbreviated PGmc; also called Common Germanic) is the reconstructed proto-language of the Germanic branch of the Indo-European languages. Proto-Germanic eventually developed from pre-Proto-Germanic into three Germanic bra ...

name , but the further etymology of the name is unknown. The wren was also known as the ('kinglet') in

Old High German Old High German (OHG; ) is the earliest stage of the German language, conventionally identified as the period from around 500/750 to 1050. Rather than representing a single supra-regional form of German, Old High German encompasses the numerous ...

, a name associated with the

fable Fable is a literary genre defined as a succinct fictional story, in prose or verse, that features animals, legendary creatures, plants, inanimate objects, or forces of nature that are anthropomorphized, and that illustrates or leads to a parti ...

of the election of the "king of birds". The bird that could fly to the highest altitude would be made king. The

eagle Eagle is the common name for the golden eagle, bald eagle, and other birds of prey in the family of the Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of Genus, genera, some of which are closely related. True eagles comprise the genus ''Aquila ( ...

outflew all other birds, but he was beaten by a small bird that had hidden in his plumage. This fable was already known to

Aristotle Aristotle (; 384–322 BC) was an Ancient Greek philosophy, Ancient Greek philosopher and polymath. His writings cover a broad range of subjects spanning the natural sciences, philosophy, linguistics, economics, politics, psychology, a ...

('' Historia Animalium'' 9.11) and Pliny ( ''Natural History'' 10.95), and was taken up by

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

authors such as Johann Geiler von Kaisersberg, but it most likely originally concerned kinglets (, such as the

goldcrest The goldcrest (''Regulus regulus'') is a very small passerine bird in the kinglet family. Its colourful golden Crest (feathers), crest feathers, as well as being called the "king of the birds" in European folklore, gives rise to its Englis ...

) and was apparently motivated by the yellow "crown" sported by these birds (a point noted already by Ludwig Uhland). The confusion stemmed in part from the similarity and consequent interchangeability of the

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek (, ; ) includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the classical antiquity, ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Greek ...

words for the wren ( , 'king') and the crest ( , 'kinglet'), and the legend's reference to the "smallest of birds" becoming king likely led the title to be transferred to the equally tiny wren. In modern German, the name of the bird is ('king of the fence (or hedge)') and in Dutch, the name is ('king of winter'). The family name Troglodytidae is derived from troglodyte, which means 'cave-dweller'. Wrens get their scientific name from the tendency of some species to forage in dark crevices. The name "wren" is also ascribed to other families of passerine birds throughout the world. In Europe, kinglets are occasionally known as "wrens", with the common firecrest and

known as the "fire-crested wren" and "golden-crested wren", respectively. The 27

Australasia Australasia is a subregion of Oceania, comprising Australia, New Zealand (overlapping with Polynesia), and sometimes including New Guinea and surrounding islands (overlapping with Melanesia). The term is used in a number of different context ...

n "wren" species in the family

are unrelated, as are the New Zealand wrens in the family Acanthisittidae, the antbirds in the family Thamnophilidae, and the Old World babblers of the family Timaliidae.

Description

Wrens are medium-small to very small birds. The Eurasian wren is among the smallest birds in its range, while the smaller species from the

Americas The Americas, sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North America and South America.''Webster's New World College Dictionary'', 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio. When viewed as a sing ...

are among the smallest passerines in that part of the world. They range in size from the white-bellied wren, which averages under and , to the giant wren, which averages about and weighs almost . The dominating colors of their

plumage Plumage () is a layer of feathers that covers a bird and the pattern, colour, and arrangement of those feathers. The pattern and colours of plumage differ between species and subspecies and may vary with age classes. Within species, there can b ...

are generally drab, composed of gray, brown, black, and white, and most species show some barring, especially on the tail or wings. No

sexual dimorphism Sexual dimorphism is the condition where sexes of the same species exhibit different Morphology (biology), morphological characteristics, including characteristics not directly involved in reproduction. The condition occurs in most dioecy, di ...

is seen in the plumage of wrens, and little difference exists between young birds and adults. All have fairly long, straight to marginally decurved (downward-curving) bills. Wrens have loud and often complex songs, sometimes given in

duet A duet (italian language, Italian: ''duo'') is a musical composition for two Performing arts, performers in which the performers have equal importance to the piece, often a composition involving two singers or two pianists. It differs from a har ...

by a pair. The songs of members of the genera '' Cyphorhinus'' and ''

Microcerculus ''Microcerculus'' is a genus of birds in the wren family Troglodytidae that are endemic to Central America and tropical regions of South America. These are small wrens with very short tails, long legs and a long bill. They forage on or near th ...

'' have been considered especially pleasant to the human ear, leading to common names such as song wren, musician wren, flutist wren, and southern nightingale-wren.

Distribution and habitat

Wrens are principally a New World family, distributed from

Alaska Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...

and

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

to southern

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

, with the greatest

species richness Species richness is the number of different species represented in an community (ecology), ecological community, landscape or region. Species richness is simply a count of species, and it does not take into account the Abundance (ecology), abunda ...

in the

Neotropics The Neotropical realm is one of the eight biogeographic realms constituting Earth's land surface. Physically, it includes the tropical terrestrial ecoregions of the Americas and the entire South American temperate zone. Definition In biogeog ...

. As suggested by its name, the

is the only species of wren found outside the Americas, as restricted to Europe, Asia, and northern Africa (it was formerly considered

conspecific Biological specificity is the tendency of a characteristic such as a behavior or a biochemical variation to occur in a particular species. Biochemist Linus Pauling stated that "Biological specificity is the set of characteristics of living organism ...

with the winter wren and Pacific wren of North America). The insular species include the Clarión wren and Socorro wren from the Revillagigedo Islands in the Pacific Ocean, and Cobb's wren in the

Falkland Islands The Falkland Islands (; ), commonly referred to as The Falklands, is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and from Cape Dub ...

, but few

Caribbean The Caribbean ( , ; ; ; ) is a region in the middle of the Americas centered around the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, mostly overlapping with the West Indies. Bordered by North America to the north, Central America ...

islands have a species of wren, with only the southern house wren in the

Lesser Antilles The Lesser Antilles is a group of islands in the Caribbean Sea, forming part of the West Indies in Caribbean, Caribbean region of the Americas. They are distinguished from the larger islands of the Greater Antilles to the west. They form an arc w ...

, the Cozumel wren of Cozumel Island, and the highly restricted Zapata wren in a single swamp in

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

. The various species occur in a wide range of habitats, ranging from dry, sparsely wooded country to rainforests. Most species are mainly found at low levels, but members of the genus ''

'' are frequently found higher, and the two members of '' Odontorchilus'' are restricted to the

forest canopy In biology, the canopy is the aboveground portion of a plant cropping or crop, formed by the collection of individual plant crowns. In forest ecology, the canopy is the upper layer or habitat zone, formed by mature tree crowns and includ ...

. A few species, notably the Eurasian wren and the house wren, are often associated with humans. Most species are resident, remaining in Central and South America all year round, but the few species found in temperate regions of the

Northern Hemisphere The Northern Hemisphere is the half of Earth that is north of the equator. For other planets in the Solar System, north is defined by humans as being in the same celestial sphere, celestial hemisphere relative to the invariable plane of the Solar ...

are partially migratory, spending the winter further south.

Behavior and ecology

Wrens vary from highly secretive species such as those found in the genus ''

'' to the highly conspicuous genus ''

'', the members of which frequently sing from exposed perches. The family as a whole exhibits a great deal of variation in their behavior. Temperate species generally occur in pairs, but some tropical species may occur in parties of up to 20 birds. Wrens build dome-shaped nests, and may be either

monogamous Monogamy ( ) is a relationship of two individuals in which they form a mutual and exclusive intimate partnership. Having only one partner at any one time, whether for life or serial monogamy, contrasts with various forms of non-monogamy (e.g. ...

polygamous Polygamy (from Late Greek , "state of marriage to many spouses") is the practice of marrying multiple spouses. When a man is married to more than one wife at the same time, it is called polygyny. When a woman is married to more than one h ...

, depending on species. Though little is known about the feeding habits of many of the Neotropical species, wrens are considered primarily

, eating insects, spiders, and other small

arthropod Arthropods ( ) are invertebrates in the phylum Arthropoda. They possess an arthropod exoskeleton, exoskeleton with a cuticle made of chitin, often Mineralization (biology), mineralised with calcium carbonate, a body with differentiated (Metam ...

s. Many species also take vegetable matter such as seeds and berries, and some (primarily the larger species) take small frogs and lizards. The Eurasian wren has been recorded wading into shallow water to catch small fish and tadpoles; Sumichrast's wren and the Zapata wren take snails; and the giant wren and marsh wren have been recorded attacking and eating bird eggs (in the latter species, even eggs of conspecifics). A local Spanish name for the giant wren and bicolored wren is ('egg-sucker'), but whether the latter actually eats eggs is unclear. The plain wren and northern house wren sometimes destroy bird eggs, and the rufous-and-white wren has been recorded killing nestlings, but this is apparently to eliminate potential food competitors rather than to feed on the eggs or nestlings. Several species of Neotropical wrens sometimes participate in mixed-species flocks or follow army ants, and the Eurasian wren may follow badgers to catch prey items disturbed by them.

Taxonomy and systematics

Revised following Martínez Gómez et al. (2005) and Mann et al. (2006), the taxonomy of some groups is highly complex, and future species-level splits are likely. Additionally, undescribed

taxa In biology, a taxon (back-formation from ''taxonomy''; : taxa) is a group of one or more populations of an organism or organisms seen by taxonomists to form a unit. Although neither is required, a taxon is usually known by a particular name and ...

are known to exist. The black-capped donacobius is an enigmatic species traditionally placed with the wrens more for lack of a more apparent alternative than as a result of thorough study. It was recently determined to be most likely closer to certain

warbler Various Passeriformes (perching birds) are commonly referred to as warblers. They are not necessarily closely related to one another, but share some characteristics, such as being fairly small, vocal, and insectivorous. Sylvioid warblers T ...

s, possibly the newly established Megaluridae, and might constitute a

monotypic In biology, a monotypic taxon is a taxonomic group (taxon) that contains only one immediately subordinate taxon. A monotypic species is one that does not include subspecies or smaller, infraspecific taxa. In the case of genera, the term "unisp ...

family. The genus level

cladogram A cladogram (from Greek language, Greek ''clados'' "branch" and ''gramma'' "character") is a diagram used in cladistics to show relations among organisms. A cladogram is not, however, an Phylogenetic tree, evolutionary tree because it does not s ...

of the Troglodytidae shown below is based on a

molecular phylogenetic Molecular phylogenetics () is the branch of phylogeny that analyzes genetic, hereditary molecular differences, predominantly in DNA sequences, to gain information on an organism's evolutionary relationships. From these analyses, it is possible to ...

study by Tyler Imfeld and collaborators that was published in 2024. The number of species in each genus is based on the list maintained by Frank Gill, Pamela C. Rasmussen and David Donsker on behalf of the

International Ornithological Committee The International Ornithologists' Union (IOU) is an international organization for the promotion of ornithology. It links basic and applied research and nurtures education and outreach activities. Specifically, the IOU organizes and funds global co ...

(IOC). Family Troglodytidae Campylorhynchus brunneicapillus 20061226

*Genus ''

'' ** White-headed wren (''Campylorhynchus albobrunneus'') ** Band-backed wren (''Campylorhynchus zonatus'') ** Grey-barred wren (''Campylorhynchus megalopterus'') ** Stripe-backed wren (''Campylorhynchus nuchalis'') ** Fasciated wren (''Campylorhynchus fasciatus'') ** Giant wren (''Campylorhynchus chiapensis'') ** Bicolored wren (''Campylorhynchus griseus'') ** Veracruz wren (''Campylorhynchus rufinucha'') ** Russet-naped wren (''Campylorhynchus humilis'') ** Rufous-backed wren (''Campylorhynchus capistratus'') ** Spotted wren (''Campylorhynchus gularis'') ** Yucatan wren (''Campylorhynchus yucatanicus'') ** Boucard's wren (''Campylorhynchus jocosus'') ** Cactus wren (''Campylorhynchus brunneicapillus'') ** Thrush-like wren (''Campylorhynchus turdinus'')

*Genus '' Odontorchilus'' ** Grey-mantled wren (''Odontorchilus branickii'') ** Tooth-billed wren (''Odontorchilus cinereus'') RockWren-1JAN2018

*Genus '' Salpinctes'' ** Rock wren (''Salpinctes obsoletus'')

*Genus '' Catherpes'' ** Canyon wren (''Catherpes mexicanus'') *Genus '' Hylorchilus'' ** Sumichrast's wren (''Hylorchilus sumichrasti'') ** Nava's wren (''Hylorchilus navai'') *Genus '' Cinnycerthia'' ** Rufous wren (''Cinnycerthia unirufa'') ** Sepia-brown wren (''Cinnycerthia olivascens'') ** Peruvian wren (''Cinnycerthia peruana'') ** Fulvous wren (''Cinnycerthia fulva'') *Genus '' Cistothorus'' ** Sedge wren (''Cistothorus stellaris'') ** Mérida wren or paramo wren (''Cistothorus meridae'') ** Apolinar's wren (''Cistothorus apolinari'') ** Grass wren (''Cistothorus platensis'') ** Marsh wren (''Cistothorus palustris'') Thryomanes bewickii 14431

*Genus '' Thryomanes'' ** Bewick's wren (''Thryomanes bewickii'') *Genus '' Ferminia'' ** Zapata wren (''Ferminia cerverai'') Pheugopedius atrogularis 1902

*Genus '' Pheugopedius'' (formerly included in ''Thryothorus'') ** Black-throated wren (''Pheugopedius atrogularis'') ** Sooty-headed wren (''Pheugopedius spadix'') ** Black-bellied wren (''Pheugopedius fasciatoventris'') ** Plain-tailed wren (''Pheugopedius euophrys'') ** Grey-browed wren (''Pheugopedius schulenbergi'') ** Inca wren (''Pheugopedius eisenmanni'') ** Moustached wren (''Pheugopedius genibarbis'') ** Whiskered wren (''Pheugopedius mystacalis'') ** Coraya wren (''Pheugopedius coraya'') ** Happy wren (''Pheugopedius felix'') ** Spot-breasted wren (''Pheugopedius maculipectus'') ** Rufous-breasted wren (''Pheugopedius rutilus'') ** Speckle-breasted wren (''Pheugopedius sclateri'') *Genus '' Thryophilus'' (formerly included in ''Thryothorus'') ** Banded wren (''Thryophilus pleurostictus'') ** Rufous-and-white wren (''Thryophilus rufalbus'') ** Antioquia wren (''Thryophilus sernai'') ** Niceforo's wren (''Thryophilus nicefori'') ** Sinaloa wren (''Thryophilus sinaloa'') Bay Wren

*Genus '' Cantorchilus'' (formerly included in ''Thryothorus'') ** Cabanis's wren (''Cantorchilus modestus'') ** Canebrake wren (''Cantorchilus zeledoni'') ** Isthmian wren (''Cantorchilus elutus'') ** Buff-breasted wren (''Cantorchilus leucotis'') (probably not

monophyletic In biological cladistics for the classification of organisms, monophyly is the condition of a taxonomic grouping being a clade – that is, a grouping of organisms which meets these criteria: # the grouping contains its own most recent co ...

) ** Superciliated wren (''Cantorchilus superciliaris'') ** Fawn-breasted wren (''Cantorchilus guarayanus'') ** Long-billed wren (''Cantorchilus longirostris'') ** Grey wren (''Cantorchilus griseus'') ** Riverside wren (''Cantorchilus semibadius'') ** Bay wren (''Cantorchilus nigricapillus'') ** Stripe-breasted wren (''Cantorchilus thoracicus'') ** Stripe-throated wren (''Cantorchilus leucopogon'') *Genus '' Thryothorus'' ** Carolina wren (''Thryothorus ludovicianus'') *** White-browed wren (''Thryothorus (ludovicianus) albinucha'') Troglodytes musculus Registro

Eurasian Wren Pangolakha Wildlife Sanctuary East Sikkim India 26

*Genus '' Troglodytes'' (10–15 species, depending on

taxonomy image:Hierarchical clustering diagram.png, 280px, Generalized scheme of taxonomy Taxonomy is a practice and science concerned with classification or categorization. Typically, there are two parts to it: the development of an underlying scheme o ...

; includes species sometimes considered to be in the genus ''Nannus'', which may be distinct) **

(''Troglodytes troglodytes'') ** Winter wren (''Troglodytes hiemalis'') ** Pacific wren (''Troglodytes pacificus'') ** Clarión wren (''Troglodytes tanneri'') ** House wren (''Troglodytes aedon'') ** Cobb's wren (''Troglodytes cobbi'') ** Socorro wren (''Troglodytes sissonii'') ** Rufous-browed wren (''Troglodytes rufociliatus'') ** Ochraceous wren (''Troglodytes ochraceus'') ** Mountain wren (''Troglodytes solstitialis'') ** Santa Marta wren (''Troglodytes monticola'') ** Tepui wren (''Troglodytes rufulus'') *Genus '' Thryorchilus'' ** Timberline wren (''Thryorchilus browni'') *Genus '' Uropsila'' ** White-bellied wren (''Uropsila leucogastra'') *Genus '' Henicorhina'' (wood wrens) ** White-breasted wood wren (''Henicorhina leucosticta'') ** Grey-breasted wood wren (''Henicorhina leucophrys'') ** Hermit wood wren (''Henicorhina anachoreta'') – split from ''H. leucophrys'' ** Bar-winged wood wren (''Henicorhina leucoptera'') ** Munchique wood wren (''Henicorhina negreti'') *Genus ''

'' ** Northern nightingale-wren (''Microcerculus philomela'') ** Southern nightingale-wren (''Microcerculus marginatus'') ** Flutist wren (''Microcerculus ustulatus'') **

Wing-banded wren The wing-banded wren (''Microcerculus bambla'') is a species of bird in the family Troglodytidae. It is found in Brazil, Ecuador, French Guiana, Guyana, Peru, Suriname, and Venezuela. Taxonomy and systematics The wing-banded wren was describe ...

(''Microcerculus bambla'') *Genus '' Cyphorhinus'' ** Chestnut-breasted wren (''Cyphorhinus thoracicus'') ** Musician wren (''Cyphorhinus arada'') ** Song wren (''Cyphorhinus phaeocephalus'')

Relationship with humans

The wren features prominently in culture. The Eurasian wren has been long considered "the king of birds" in Europe. Killing one or harassing its nest is associated with bad luck, such as broken bones, lightning strikes on homes, or injury to cattle. Wren Day, celebrated in parts of Ireland on

Saint Stephen's Day Saint Stephen's Day, also called the Feast of Saint Stephen, is a Christian saint's day to commemorate Saint Stephen, the first Christian martyr or protomartyr, celebrated on 26 December in Western Christianity and 27 December in Eastern Ch ...

(26 December), features a fake wren being paraded around town on a decorative pole; up to the 20th century, real birds were hunted for this purpose. A possible origin for the tradition is revenge for the betrayal of

Saint Stephen Stephen (; ) is traditionally venerated as the protomartyr or first martyr of Christianity."St ...

by a noisy wren when he was trying to hide from enemies in a bush. The Carolina wren (''Thryothorus ludovicianus'') has been the state bird of

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

since 1948, and features on the back of its state quarter. The British farthing featured a wren on the reverse side from 1937 until its demonetisation in 1960. The Cactus wren (''Campylorhynchus brunneicapillus'') was designated the state bird of

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

in 1931. The

Women's Royal Naval Service The Women's Royal Naval Service (WRNS; popularly and officially known as the Wrens) was the women's branch of the United Kingdom's Royal Navy. First formed in 1917 for the World War I, First World War, it was disbanded in 1919, then revived in ...

(WRNS) were nicknamed Wrens based on the acronym WRNS. After the Women's Royal Navy Service was integrated into the Royal Navy in 1993, the title of Wren was dropped from official usage, however unofficially female sailors are still referred to as Wrens. File:2000 SC Proof.png, alt=South Carolina state quarter File:British farthing 1951 reverse.png, alt=British farthing

References

* * nglish with Spanish abstract

External links

Videos, photos and sounds
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