Habitat
Breeds commonly in coniferous forests with complex understory (Alexander et al. 2003). Frequently associated with and nests and forages near water, particularly streams, but also bogs, swamps, and lakes (Hejl et al. 2002) and dead wood in the form of fallen logs and coarse woody debris, standing dead logs, stumps and slash piles (Hagar 1960, Ellison 1985, Manuwal 1986, Waterhouse 1998) and very large trees (Godfrey 1986, Gilbert and Allwine 1991). Nests on coastal block fields and sea cliffs and in dense vegetation within grass meadows and tall forb meadows (Gibson and Byrd 2007). May also nest in the roots of upturned trees, in old stumps, brush piles or abandoned buildings (Kessler and Kogut 1985, Armstrong 1995). In the Aleutian and Pribilof Islands, found on beaches (Armstrong 2008). Elsewhere may utilize a wide range of habitat types ranging from recently- cleared to old-growth forest (Kessler and Kogut 1985). In the winter utilizes a wider variety of woodland habitats (Dickinson 1999).
References
Alexander, S. A., F. I. Doyle, C. D. Ecker, H. Grünberg, N. L. Hughes, M. Jensen, I. Johnson, D. H. Mossop, W. A. Nixon, and P. H. Sinclair. 2003. Birds of the Yukon Territory (P. H. Sinclair, W. A. Nixon, C. D. Eckert, and N. L. Hughes, eds.). UBC Press, Vancouver, B.C.
Armstrong, R. H. 1995. Guide to the birds of Alaska, 4th ed. Alaska Northwest Books, Anchorage, AK. 322 pp.
Armstrong, R. H. 2008. Guide to the birds of Alaska. 5th edition. Alaska Northwest Books, Anchorage, AK. 360 pp.
Dickinson, M. B., ed. 1999. Field guide to the birds of North America. 3rd ed. Natl. Geogr. Soc., Washington, D.C.
Ellison, W. G. 1985. Winter Wren. Pp. in The atlas of breeding birds of Vermont (S. B. Laughlin and D. P. Kibbe, eds.). University Press of New England, Hanover, NH.
Gibson, D. D. and G. V. Byrd. 2007. Birds of the Aleutian Islands, Alaska. Nuttall Ornithological Club, Cambridge, MA and AOU, Washington D.C.
Gilbert, F. F. and R. Allwine. 1991. Spring bird communities in the Oregon Cascade Range. USDA, USFS Report 285, Portland, OR.
Godfrey, W. E. 1986. The Birds of Canada. Revised edition. National Museum of Natural Sciences, Ottawa, Canada. 595 pp.
Hagar, D. C. 1960. The interrelationships of logging, birds, and timber regeneration in the Douglas-fir region of northwestern California. Ecology 41:116-125.
Hejl, S. J., J. A. Holmes, and D. E. Kroodsma. 2002. Winter Wren (TRYGLODYTES TRYGLODYTES). In The Birds of North America, No. 623 (A. Poole and F. Gill, Eds.). Philadelphia: The Academy of Natural Sciences; Washington, D.C.: The American Ornithologists’ Union.
Kessler, W. B. and T. E. Kogut. 1985. Habitat orientations of forest birds in southeastern Alaska. Northwest Science 59:58-65.
Manuwal, D. A. 1986. Characteristics of bird assemblages along linear riparian zones in western Montana. Murrelet 67: 10-18.
Waterhouse, F. L. 1998. Habitat of Winter Wrens in riparian and upland areas of coastal forests. M. S. thesis. Simon Fraser University, Vancouver, B. C.
