Wrentit

Chamaea fasciata

The Wrentit is actually neither a wren NOR a tit, as the name might imply. Scholars have debated where this bird fits into scientific nomenclature as long as we have known them. These small skulking birds, while often difficult to see, are more easily found by their unique songs echoing down from chaparral-covered slopes. Often, when they come into view, they give us only the briefest of glimpses.

The Pacific Coastal slopes from southern Washington to northern Baja California (Mexico) are the only places we find these shy birds. When they are less than two months old, they pair up and remain with their mates for the rest of their lives. Most of these birds rarely wander more than a quarter mile from their birthplaces. The average lifespan of a Wrentit is about three and a half years, but we have documented them to live for over thirteen years.

Today’s science recognises five subspecies of Wrentit:

C. f. phaea lives on the coastal belt from the Columbia River to northern California.
C. f. margra lives in the interior of southern Oregon.
C. f. rufula lives near the northern California coast from Oregon to the San Francisco Bay.
C. f. fasciata lives near the California coast from Monterey to San Luis Obispo.
C. f. henshawi lives in coastal and interior areas of southern California and northern Baja California (Mexico).

My southern California home is on a hilltop in oak-chaparral habitat. The ringing songs of Wrentits echoing from downslope on my property, or from neighboring hillsides, are a treat I relish. I enjoy them often. On good days, they will approach closely and I’m able to hear their chittering calls from the cover of nearby thickets.

24 Photos

Wrentit - Chamaea fasciata — **Wrentit**
*(Chamaea fasciata)*

**Description:**
Up-slope along Old Mine Road, to the Montezuma Mines near Ranchita, California. San Diego County.
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**Date Taken:** 2014:10:17 13:25

**Location:**

Old Mine Road
Ranchita, California
United States
3960.17 ft above sea level

**Camera Information:**
NIKON D3X, 800 mm, f/8.0, 1/80

**File Name:** D3X0677-WrenTit

© 2014 Jack Daynes, shadeTreeImaging.com

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Pin It — **Wrentit**
*(Chamaea fasciata)*

**Description:**
Up-slope along Old Mine Road, to the Montezuma Mines near Ranchita, California. San Diego County.
Read More

**Date Taken:** 2014:10:17 13:25

**Location:**

Old Mine Road
Ranchita, California
United States
3960.17 ft above sea level

**Camera Information:**
NIKON D3X, 800 mm, f/8.0, 1/80

**File Name:** D3X0677-WrenTit

© 2014 Jack Daynes, shadeTreeImaging.com

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