Alternative name: Paramo Wren
- Cistothorus meridae
Identification
10cm. A typical wren.
- Off-white supercilium, broader behind eye
- Brown-mottled ear-coverts and lords
- Medium brown crown and nape, both streaked darker brown
- Blackish-brown shoulders and upper back, streaked off-white
- Barred dull blackish and rich brown rump and undertail coverts
- Bright buffy brown upperwing-coverts, prominently barred dark brown
- Medium brown rectories, sharply barred blackish
- Off-white chin and throat
- Buffy chest, deeper buff chest with some diffuse darker bars
Sexes similar, juveniles undescribed.
Distribution
Endemic to the Venezuelan Andes from southern Trujillo south to northern Tachira.
Rather common in its very small range.
Taxonomy
This is a monotypic species.
Probably closely related to Sedge Wren and Apolinar's Wren.
Habitat
Found in wet páramo with hirsute ground plant and bushes.
Occurs at 3000 to 4100 m.
Behaviour
Diet
Feeds on arthropods. Forages low down in vegetation.
Breeding
Few information. No breeding nest recorded. A dormitory nest was domed with a side entrance and made of woven grass stems and fine leave hairs.
Movements
Some local movement recorded, probably related to rainy season.
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, S. M. Billerman, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2019. The eBird/Clements Checklist of Birds of the World: v2019. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved June 2014)
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2025) Merida Wren. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 11 May 2025 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Merida_Wren
