| Rock wren | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Passeriformes |
| Family: | Troglodytidae |
| Genus: | Salpinctes Cabanis, 1847 |
| Species: | S. obsoletus |
| Binomial name | |
| Salpinctes obsoletus (Say, 1822) | |
 | |
Therock wren (Salpinctes obsoletus) is a smallsongbird of thewren family native to western North America, Mexico and Central America. It is theonly species in the genusSalpinctes.
Measurements:[2]
They have grey-brown upperparts with small black and white spots and pale grey underparts with a light brown rump. Additional distinctive features include a light grey line over the eye, a long slightly decurved thinbill, a long barred tail and dark legs. They actively hunt on the ground, around and under objects, probing with their bill as their extraction tool. They mainly eatinsects andspiders. Its song is a trill that becomes more varied during thenesting season. These birds are permanent residents in the south of their range, but northern populationsmigrate to warmer areas from the centralUnited States and southwestCanada southwards. They are occasional vagrants in the eastern United States. During the breeding season, they move to dry, rocky locations, includingcanyons, from southwesternCanada south toCosta Rica to buildcup nests in a crevice or cavity, usually among rocks.
