{"id":56793,"date":"2019-03-23T06:41:25","date_gmt":"2019-03-23T12:41:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=56793"},"modified":"2023-09-19T14:48:18","modified_gmt":"2023-09-19T20:48:18","slug":"marsh-wren-nesting-season-has-begun-at-bear-river-mbr","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2019\/03\/23\/marsh-wren-nesting-season-has-begun-at-bear-river-mbr\/","title":{"rendered":"Marsh Wren Nesting Season Has Begun At Bear River MBR"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"MaleMale Marsh Wren surveying his territory \u2013 Nikon D500, f7.1, 1\/2000, ISO 400, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

Marsh Wren nesting season has begun here in northern Utah and in my opinion one of the best places to see, listen to and photograph them is from the auto tour route at Bear River MBR<\/span><\/a>. Listening for the singing males is a great help in locating these tiny wrens in the freshwater marshes and wetlands that surround the Great Salt Lake, the males seem to only stop singing this time of the year when they are looking for food, looking for nesting materials or placing nesting materials in the multiple nests that they build.<\/p>\n

Listen to a recording of their song here<\/span><\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"MaleMale Marsh Wren with nesting material in his bill \u2013 Nikon D500, f7.1, 1\/2500, ISO 400, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

Hint: If you go slow, whether driving or walking, you are more likely to see these small wrens, or any small birds for that matter, than if you are zipping along at a fast pace. It only makes sense, right?<\/p>\n

Once I have located a Marsh Wren I like to sit, wait and watch them because if they are building a nest in the area they will come back time and again which allows more opportunities to photograph the wrens singing, with nesting materials, snatching midges from mid air and going about the business of being a wren.<\/p>\n

\"SingingSinging Marsh Wren male at Bear River MBR \u2013 Nikon D500, f7.1, 1\/2500, ISO 400, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

Last year I spent about an hour and a half sitting along the auto tour route in a mobile blind (vehicle) observing and photographing this industrious male Marsh Wren as he sang on his territory, foraged for insects, searched for nesting materials and added them to the nest he was building. Occasionally I saw other wrens in the same area but they were silent so I suspect that they might have been females observing his nest building skills and listening to his saucy songs.<\/p>\n

\"MaleMale Marsh Wren checking me out \u2013 Nikon D500, f7.1, 1\/1600, ISO 400, +0.7 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

I love to photograph the Marsh Wrens at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge whenever I have the chance but I have found that they are far more visible during the nesting season than they are at any other time of the year. I can’t wait head up to the refuge and photograph these wrens and the rest of the birds I know I’ll find there as soon as the weather allows.<\/p>\n

Life is good.<\/p>\n

Mia<\/p>\n

Click here<\/span><\/a> to view more of my Marsh Wren photos plus facts and information about this species.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Marsh Wren nesting season has begun here in northern Utah and in my opinion one of the best places to see, listen to and photograph them is from the auto tour route at Bear River MBR.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":116072,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[124,27,1148,538,26],"tags":[4004,4073,777,4062,4094,2118,7025,4182,4998,4179,165,6308,4095,5802,3822],"class_list":["post-56793","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-bear-river-migratory-bird-refuge","category-avian","category-box-elder-county-utah","category-marsh-wrens","category-utah","tag-adult","tag-breeding-season","tag-cistothorus-palustris","tag-male","tag-marsh","tag-marsh-wren","tag-mating-season","tag-nesting-material","tag-nests","tag-singing-2","tag-spring","tag-territory","tag-wetlands","tag-wren","tag-wrens"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/marsh-wren-nesting-material-mia-mcpherson-9979.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p11Mom-eM1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":80601,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2021\/03\/07\/marsh-wren-nesting-season-begins-in-march\/","url_meta":{"origin":56793,"position":0},"title":"Marsh Wren Nesting Season Begins In March","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"March 7, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"On my last visit to Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge I heard the unmistakable song of a Marsh Wren singing and throughout the morning I heard more of their songs.","rel":"","context":"In "Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge"","block_context":{"text":"Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/bear-river-migratory-bird-refuge\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Male Marsh Wren with nest material, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, 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McPherson","date":"March 26, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"By using a vehicle as a mobile blind I was able to photograph the wrens as they sang, searched for nesting materials, defended their breeding territories and built their nests from a distance.","rel":"","context":"In "Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge"","block_context":{"text":"Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/bear-river-migratory-bird-refuge\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Marsh Wren male on his territory, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/marsh-wren-male-nesting-season-mia-mcpherson-0428.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/marsh-wren-male-nesting-season-mia-mcpherson-0428.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, 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Refuge","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/bear-river-migratory-bird-refuge\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Marsh Wren with rushes at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/marsh-wren-rushes-mia-mcpherson-1924.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/marsh-wren-rushes-mia-mcpherson-1924.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/marsh-wren-rushes-mia-mcpherson-1924.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/marsh-wren-rushes-mia-mcpherson-1924.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 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The tiny wren wasn't close so pointing him out was no easy task.","rel":"","context":"In "Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge"","block_context":{"text":"Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/bear-river-migratory-bird-refuge\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Marsh Wren singing on a spring morning, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/marsh-wren-singing-in-spring-mia-mcpherson-1509.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/marsh-wren-singing-in-spring-mia-mcpherson-1509.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/marsh-wren-singing-in-spring-mia-mcpherson-1509.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, 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I spotted a Marsh Wren in the marsh of Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge and stopped to take photos of the wren singing out in the open.","rel":"","context":"In "Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge"","block_context":{"text":"Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/bear-river-migratory-bird-refuge\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Marsh Wren singing on the last day of March, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/marsh-wren-last-day-of-march-mia-mcpherson-1546.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/marsh-wren-last-day-of-march-mia-mcpherson-1546.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, 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