Carolina Wren
Thryothorus ludovicianus

Carolina Wrens look much like the slightly smaller, longer tailed Bewick’s Wren, but with a richer redness in their brown tones. The Carolina Wren ranges across most of the eastern USA. Where the Bewick’s Wren is more of a western bird. Both birds share an inquisitive demeanor. This bird has a loud song, much louder than the Bewick’s Wrens I am more familiar with. I found its piercing notes carried so well, a bird 100 feet away seemed only a few yards from me.
Science recognises ten subspecies of this bird. All members look and sound similar, and because most of them are nonmigratory, perhaps the best way to determine race is by the territory they inhabit, though their ranges may overlap:
- T. l. ludovicianus lives in southeastern Canada and eastern USA.
- T. l. miamensis lives in Florida.
- T. l. nesophilus lives in islands off north western Florida.
- T. l. burleighi lives on islands off the Mississippi coast.
- T. l. lomitensis lives in Texas and northeastern Mexico.
- T. l. berlandieri lives on barrier islands in the Gulf of Mexico off Mississippi.
- T. l. tropicalis lives in northeastern Mexico.
- T. l. albinucha lives on the Yucatán Peninsula and south to northern Central America.
- T. l. petenicus lives in southern Mexico to northern Central America.
- T. l. subfulvus lives from northern to middle Central America.
Though the females can (and will) sing, only the slightly larger males sing to defend territorial boundaries. Pair-bonds last for years, and often for life. Carolina Wrens are adaptable to many habitats. They are found in oak and mixed oak woodlands, riparian woods, mixed and tangled undergrowth, swamps, farmlands and suburban areas. Cold climates do not suit these birds, but they will expand their range north following mild winters. The past century has seen a significant expansion northward.
19 Photos

Carolina Wren(Thryothorus ludovicianus) |
Description: This was my first meeting with this species. I was at a rest stop/picnic area just south of Quemado Texas next to US-277 proved to be a fuitful location to meet new birds. |
Date Taken: 2020:03:10 10:31 |
Location:
Normandy |
Camera Information: NIKON D500, 550 mm, f/8.0, 1/250 |
File Name: CarolinaWren_D508441-Quemado-TX |
© 2020 Jack Daynes, shadeTreeImaging.com |


Carolina Wren(Thryothorus ludovicianus) |
Description: This was my first meeting with this species. I was at a rest stop/picnic area just south of Quemado Texas next to US-277 proved to be a fuitful location to meet new birds. |
Date Taken: 2020:03:10 10:31 |
Location:
Normandy |
Camera Information: NIKON D500, 550 mm, f/8.0, 1/250 |
File Name: CarolinaWren_D508456-Quemado-TX |
© 2020 Jack Daynes, shadeTreeImaging.com |


Carolina Wren(Thryothorus ludovicianus) |
Description: This was my first meeting with this species. I was at a rest stop/picnic area just south of Quemado Texas next to US-277 proved to be a fuitful location to meet new birds. |
Date Taken: 2020:03:10 10:37 |
Location:
Normandy |
Camera Information: NIKON D500, 550 mm, f/8.0, 1/320 |
File Name: CarolinaWren_D508478-Quemado-TX |
© 2020 Jack Daynes, shadeTreeImaging.com |


Carolina Wren(Thryothorus ludovicianus) |
Description: On my second day in camp I used my bike to explore the camp and chase birds here at the Triple R RV Resort on the Nueces River near Crystal City Texas. |
Date Taken: 2020:03:12 12:05 |
Location:
Nueces River |
Camera Information: NIKON D500, 550 mm, f/7.1, 1/1000 |
File Name: CarolinaWren_D509490-NuecesRiver |
© 2020 Jack Daynes, shadeTreeImaging.com |


Carolina Wren(Thryothorus ludovicianus) |
Description: On my second day in camp I used my bike to explore the camp and chase birds here at the Triple R RV Resort on the Nueces River near Crystal City Texas. |
Date Taken: 2020:03:12 12:05 |
Location:
Nueces River |
Camera Information: NIKON D500, 550 mm, f/7.1, 1/1000 |
File Name: CarolinaWren_D509492-NuecesRiver |
© 2020 Jack Daynes, shadeTreeImaging.com |


Carolina Wren(Thryothorus ludovicianus) |
Description: On my second day in camp I used my bike to explore the camp and chase birds here at the Triple R RV Resort on the Nueces River near Crystal City Texas. |
Date Taken: 2020:03:12 12:05 |
Location:
Nueces River |
Camera Information: NIKON D500, 550 mm, f/7.1, 1/1000 |
File Name: CarolinaWren_D509507-NuecesRiver |
© 2020 Jack Daynes, shadeTreeImaging.com |


Carolina Wren(Thryothorus ludovicianus) |
Description: On my second day in camp I used my bike to explore the camp and chase birds here at the Triple R RV Resort on the Nueces River near Crystal City Texas. |
Date Taken: 2020:03:12 12:06 |
Location:
Nueces River |
Camera Information: NIKON D500, 550 mm, f/7.1, 1/1000 |
File Name: CarolinaWren_D509515-NuecesRiver |
© 2020 Jack Daynes, shadeTreeImaging.com |


Carolina Wren(Thryothorus ludovicianus) |
Description: On my second day in camp I used my bike to explore the camp and chase birds here at the Triple R RV Resort on the Nueces River near Crystal City Texas. |
Date Taken: 2020:03:12 12:07 |
Location:
Nueces River |
Camera Information: NIKON D500, 550 mm, f/7.1, 1/800 |
File Name: CarolinaWren_D509542-NuecesRiver |
© 2020 Jack Daynes, shadeTreeImaging.com |


Carolina Wren(Thryothorus ludovicianus) |
Description: Wrens, like the titmice, keep an eye out for the neighborhood. It was ten days earlier when I paid my first visit to the Sabal Palm Sanctuary in Brownsville Texas. I tried to explore trails I missed last time here. |
Date Taken: 2021:01:28 8:39 |
Location:
Sable Palms Sanctuary |
Camera Information: NIKON D5, 800 mm, f/11.0, 1/800 |
File Name: CarolinaWren_D5X5198-SabalPalms |
© 2021 Jack Daynes, shadeTreeImaging.com |


Carolina Wren(Thryothorus ludovicianus) |
Description: These feisty little wrens patrol their territories all year. Less than two miles south of the small town of Quemado Texas is a roadside rest stop, or picnic area, as Texas calls them, where I had a couple of first meetings with bird species in March 2020 on my way to Brownsville Texas. My winter visit in January 2021 had some nice surprises for me as well. |
Date Taken: 2021:01:11 11:52 |
Location:
Roadside Stop |
Camera Information: NIKON D5, 800 mm, f/5.6, 1/8000 |
File Name: CarolinaWren_D5X9939-Quemado-TX |
© 2021 Jack Daynes, shadeTreeImaging.com |


Carolina Wren(Thryothorus ludovicianus) |
Description: During my three-day visit with friends in Dayton Ohio, I split my time with the local birds between backyard feeders and a local arboretum. |
Date Taken: 2023:05:04 5:45 |
Location:
Cox Arboretum |
Camera Information: NIKON Z 9, 800 mm, f/7.1, 1/800 |
File Name: CarolinaWren_ZX98080_SouthDayton-OH |
© 2023 Jack Daynes, shadeTreeImaging.com |


Carolina Wren(Thryothorus ludovicianus) |
Description: I spent a week visiting friends in Linwood Kansas, and spent parts of several days chasing yardbirds. Those I met were rather shy, and resisted posing for my camera, but I captured what I could. |
Date Taken: 2023:04:21 16:01 |
Location:
Fall Leaf |
Camera Information: NIKON Z 9, 800 mm, f/8.0, 1/800 |
File Name: CarolinaWren_ZX94564_Linwood-KS |
© 2023 Jack Daynes, shadeTreeImaging.com |


Carolina Wren(Thryothorus ludovicianus) |
Description: Carolina Wrens are the primary representatives of the ‘wren clan’ in south Texas. Their inquisitive nature makes them easier to find here than some of the shier species. |
Date Taken: 2022:09:24 18:10 |
Location:
National Butterfly Center |
Camera Information: NIKON D850, 800 mm, f/8.0, 1/500 |
File Name: CarolinaWren_8506024-NationalButterflyCenter |
© 2022 Jack Daynes, shadeTreeImaging.com |


Carolina Wren(Thryothorus ludovicianus) |
Description: Carolina Wrens are the primary representatives of the ‘wren clan’ in south Texas. Their inquisitive nature makes them easier to find here than some of the shier species. |
Date Taken: 2022:09:24 18:10 |
Location:
National Butterfly Center |
Camera Information: NIKON D850, 800 mm, f/8.0, 1/500 |
File Name: CarolinaWren_8506014-NationalButterflyCenter |
© 2022 Jack Daynes, shadeTreeImaging.com |


Carolina Wren(Thryothorus ludovicianus) |
Description: Carolina Wrens are the primary representatives of the ‘wren clan’ in south Texas. Their inquisitive nature makes them easier to find here than some of the shier species. |
Date Taken: 2022:09:24 18:09 |
Location:
National Butterfly Center |
Camera Information: NIKON D850, 800 mm, f/8.0, 1/250 |
File Name: CarolinaWren_8505997-NationalButterflyCenter |
© 2022 Jack Daynes, shadeTreeImaging.com |


Carolina Wren(Thryothorus ludovicianus) |
Description: The loud songs of Carolina Wrens rang through the Smith Oaks Sanctuary in High Island Texas. |
Date Taken: 2022:08:14 16:31 |
Location:
Smith Oaks Sanctuary |
Camera Information: NIKON D850, 800 mm, f/8.0, 1/3200 |
File Name: CarolinaWren_8503841SmithOaks.HighIsland.TX_ |
© 2022 Jack Daynes, shadeTreeImaging.com |


Carolina Wren(Thryothorus ludovicianus) |
Description: The loud songs of Carolina Wrens rang through the Smith Oaks Sanctuary in High Island Texas. |
Date Taken: 2022:08:14 16:30 |
Location:
Smith Oaks Sanctuary |
Camera Information: NIKON D850, 800 mm, f/8.0, 1/2000 |
File Name: CarolinaWren_8503798SmithOaks.HighIsland.TX_ |
© 2022 Jack Daynes, shadeTreeImaging.com |


Carolina Wren(Thryothorus ludovicianus) |
Description: These feisty little wrens patrol their territories all year. Less than two miles south of the small town of Quemado Texas is a roadside rest stop, or picnic area, as Texas calls them, where I had a couple of first meetings with bird species in March 2020 on my way to Brownsville Texas. My winter visit in January 2021 had some nice surprises for me as well. |
Date Taken: 2021:01:11 13:55 |
Location:
Roadside Stop |
Camera Information: NIKON D5, 800 mm, f/11.0, 1/2000 |
File Name: CarolinaWren_D5X0391-Quemado-TX |
© 2021 Jack Daynes, shadeTreeImaging.com |


Carolina Wren(Thryothorus ludovicianus) |
Description: The loud songs of Carolina Wrens rang through the Smith Oaks Sanctuary in High Island Texas. |
Date Taken: 2022:08:14 16:28 |
Location:
Smith Oaks Sanctuary |
Camera Information: NIKON D850, 800 mm, f/8.0, 1/2500 |
File Name: CarolinaWren_8503754SmithOaks.HighIsland.TX_ |
© 2022 Jack Daynes, shadeTreeImaging.com |

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