Cactus Wren – Arizona’s State Bird

By Tom Mangelsdorf

 

Cactus Wrens are fairly common throughout the southwest and especially in Northeast Scottsdale. They were officially recognized as Arizona’s state bird in 1931. These birds, about the size of a common Robin, build their nests in several varieties of cactus such as the staghorn cholla. The male and female Cactus Wrens mate for life. The male will often build several nests during the spring and the female may lay eggs in one or more of them. Some suggest that the multiple nest building creates “decoys” to confuse predators as to where the eggs actually are.

The nests themselves are usually easy to spot deep within the prickly branches of a cholla, but it is difficult to clearly see the nest entrance in most cases…a particularly tough challenge when trying to photograph the well camouflaged nest dwellers. I recently found one nest that was relatively clear and was able to spend some time watching the birds come and go.

For more information on Arizona’s favorite bird, go to Wikipedia at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cactus_wren.

 

Cactus Wren

Cactus Wren (Courtesy Tom Mangelsdorf)

mangelsdorf_cactus_wren2

Related Websites

Wikipedia, Cactus Wren, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cactus_wren  Visit Website

Tom Mangelsdorf’s Photo Website, http://www.tommangelsdorf.com Visit Website

 

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Author: Tom Mangelsdorf

Tom Mangelsdorf is a long-time resident of north Scottsdale. Tom is a frequent contributor to A Peek at the Peak. Tom is usually among the winners of The Peak's annual Summer Fun Photography Contest.

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