Riverside Wren vs Stripe-breasted Wren

Riverside Wren

Cantorchilus semibadius

Small17 gForest

The riverside wren is 13 to 14 cm (5.1 to 5.5 in) long and weighs 17 g (0.60 oz). The adults have a bright orange-brown crown; chestnut nape, back, and rump; and a blackish tail with buff-white bars. They have a black-over-white supercilium and the rest of the face is streaked and spotted black and white. From throat to vent their underparts are pale gray with narrow black bars; the gray becomes somewhat buffy to the rear. Juveniles are duller overall, have fine black scaling on the crown, and the underparts' black bars are not as crisp. Voice: Both sexes of riverside wren sing, repeated "loud ringing phrases" and followed by different phrases, also repeated. Their calls include "harsh churr and various clear tinkling notes".

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Jacek Pietruszewski · CC BY 4.0

Stripe-breasted Wren

Cantorchilus thoracicus

Small18 gShrubland

The stripe-breasted wren is 11.5 to 12.5 cm (4.5 to 4.9 in) long and has a mean weight of 17.6 g (0.62 oz). Adults have a gray-brown crown, dark umber shoulders, back, and rump, and a dull blackish tail with buffy bars. Their face and sides of the neck have white streaks over a blackish base. Their throat and chest have black, white, and gray lengthwise streaks that stop abruptly at the plain olive-brown lower belly. Juveniles' upperparts are more russet than the adults' and the throat and chest have grayish brown, white, and dusky stripes. Voice: The stripe-breasted wren has two very different song types. One, which is apparently sung only by the male, is " a uniform series of whistles on one note" similar to that of some small owls. The other, sung by both sexes antiphonally, is "a cheerful series of liquid bubbling whistles." The species also has a variety of calls.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Andre Knocklein · CC BY 4.0

Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Riverside Wren and Stripe-breasted Wren.