Habitat

The Canyon Wren is appropriately named. It occupies steep, rocky habitats, and is primarily associated with cliffs, canyons, large rocky outcrops, exposed rocky ridgelines, and, more locally, steep boulder-covered slopes and canyon bottoms. These topographic features provide rocky substrates, crevices, and spaces that the species requires for foraging and nesting. In addition, they offer protective shade and cool temperatures during seasons of intense heat and exposure (58 Miller, A. H., and R. C. Stebbins (1964). The lives of desert animals in Joshua Tree National Monument. University of California Press, Berkeley, CA, USA . Close ). The species typically occupies arid regions, but it may prefer territories that have some water, especially during the breeding period (22 Bent, A. C. (1948). Life histories of North American nuthatches, wrens, thrashers, and their allies. United States National Museum Bulletin 195. Close ). However, water probably does not limit its distribution or abundance as it also occurs in areas that lack permanent surface water (59 Weathers, W. W. (1983). Birds of Southern California's Deep Canyon. University of California Press, Berkeley, CA, USA. Close ).

The Canyon Wren occurs from sea level to 3,000 m elevation, but its presence is not correlated with any particular plant community. It occurs wherever appropriate rocky habitats are present in deserts (60 Phillips, A. R., J. T. Marshall Jr., and G. B. Monson (1964). The Birds of Arizona. University of Arizona Press, Tucson, AZ, USA. Close , 1 Tramontano, J. P. (1964). Comparative studies of the Rock Wren and the Canyon Wren. M.S. thesis, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA. Close ), chaparral (61 Cody, M. L. (1974). Competition and Structure of Bird Communities. Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ, USA. Close , 2 Mirsky, E. N. (1976). Ecology of coexistence in a wren-wrentit-warbler guild. Ph.D. dissertation, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA. Close , 62 Verner, J., and A. S. Boss (1980). California wildlife and their habitats: western Sierra Nevada. U.S. Forest Service, Fresno, CA, USA. Close ), grasslands (63 Johnsgard, P. A. (1979). Birds of the Great Plains: Breeding Species and their Distribution. University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln, NE, USA. Close ), and oak (Quercus) woodlands (61 Cody, M. L. (1974). Competition and Structure of Bird Communities. Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ, USA. Close ), as well as pinyon pine–juniper (Pinus edulis–Juniperus) (48 Wickersham, L. E. (Editor) (2016). The Second Colorado Breeding Bird Atlas. Colorado Bird Atlas Partnership and Colorado Parks and Wildlife, Denver, CO, USA. Close ), redwood (Sequoia sempervirens), ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa), and Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii) forests (16 Jones, S. L., and J. Scott Dieni (1995). Canyon Wren (Catherpes mexicanus). In The Birds of North America, No. 197 (A. Poole and F. Gill, Editors). Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, PA and American Ornithologists' Union, Washington DC, USA. Close ), and tropical rainforest in the Atlantic lowlands of Chiapas, Mexico (200 m elevation; 54 Gómez de Silva, H. (1995). Canyon Wren Catherpes mexicanus in humid lowlands of Mexico, with notes on near sympatry with other rock-loving wrens. Bulletin of the British Ornithologists’ Club 115(2):132–133. Close ). It consistently occupies streamside and desert wash areas containing rocky cliffs, talus, or rock outcrops (1 Tramontano, J. P. (1964). Comparative studies of the Rock Wren and the Canyon Wren. M.S. thesis, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA. Close , 62 Verner, J., and A. S. Boss (1980). California wildlife and their habitats: western Sierra Nevada. U.S. Forest Service, Fresno, CA, USA. Close , 64 Johnston, H. L., and J. T. Ratti (2002). Distribution and habitat selection of Canyon Wrens, Lower Salmon River, Idaho. Journal of Wildlife Management. 66(4):1104–1111. Close ). Individuals may roam far out into steep-banked desert washes in Arizona (especially after heavy mountain snows; 60 Phillips, A. R., J. T. Marshall Jr., and G. B. Monson (1964). The Birds of Arizona. University of Arizona Press, Tucson, AZ, USA. Close ) or into riparian vegetation (65 Rosenberg, K. V., R. D. Ohmart, W. C. Hunter, and B. W. Anderson (1991). Birds of the Lower Colorado River Valley. University of Arizona Press, Tucson, AZ, USA. Close ), but typically not far from rocky cliffs or outcrops. In northern Colorado, its occupancy was positively correlated to sites with overhung cliffs (slope > 90°) and presence of Cliff Swallow (Petrochelidon pyrrhonota) (5 Warning, N., N. Covy, A. Rose, X. M. Phan, and L. Benedict (2015). Canyon wren territory occupancy and site attributes in northern Colorado. American Midland Naturalist 174:150–160. Close ). In Mexico, the Canyon Wren is reported to occur in towns and small cities with narrow streets and church spires (60 Phillips, A. R., J. T. Marshall Jr., and G. B. Monson (1964). The Birds of Arizona. University of Arizona Press, Tucson, AZ, USA. Close , 66 Russell, S. M., and G. Monson (1998). The Birds of Sonora. University of Arizona Press, Tucson, AZ, USA. Close ), though it occurs infrequently in such areas in the southwestern United States (e.g., Arizona; 67 Corman, T. E., and C. Wise-Gervais (2005). Arizona Breeding Bird Atlas. University of New Mexico Press, Albuquerque, NM, USA. Close ).

Overwintering habitat is apparently similar to breeding habitat, since the species is nonmigratory and sedentary. Some individuals may withdraw in winter from high elevations (e.g., may roam far out along desert washes in Arizona, especially after heavy mountain snows; 60 Phillips, A. R., J. T. Marshall Jr., and G. B. Monson (1964). The Birds of Arizona. University of Arizona Press, Tucson, AZ, USA. Close ).