State Birds
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Arizona Symbols
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Arizona State Bird
Cactus Wren
(Campylorpynchus brunncicapillum)
Adopted on March 16, 1931.
The Cactus Wren, Campylorpynchus brunncicapillum, was adopted as the official state bird of Arizona on
March 16, 1931. It remained Arizona's only official wildlife representative until 1985
The Cactus Wren lives 2-4 years and is protected by federal law, as are all songbirds in Arizona. It is illegal
to hunt or possess live specimens. The Cactus Wren was officially designated the Arizona State Bird by legislative
action on March 16, 1931.The Cactus Wren is the largest wren in Arizona, measuring 7 to 8 inches in length. Its
song is a rather raucous and unmusical cha-cha-cha which sounds like a car engine trying to turn over.
Description of
Arizona State Bird: Cactus Wren
The Cactus Wren's back is brown with white spots and its underparts, including the throat, are lighter colored
with black spots. The bill is as long as its head and curves down slightly. Its wing feathers have white bars and
its tail has black bars. A distinctive white line appears over each eye. The Cactus Wren resides at lower elevations
in the southern and western part of the state below the Mogollon Rim. It can also be found in parts of Utah, Texas,
New Mexico, California, and Mexico.
The female Cactus Wren lays 3-4 eggs which are then incubated for about 16 days. Only the females are involved
with the incubation. The young weigh approximately 3-4 grams at hatching. About 65-70% of all nesting attempts are
successful. The young leave the nest after approximately three weeks. Most pairs raise 2-3 families between late
March and July.
- Size: 18-22 cm (7-9 in)
- Weight: 32-47 g (1.13-1.66 ounces)
- Very large wren.
- Upperparts brownish with scattered white streaks.
- Long white eyestripe.
- Wings barred.
- Long, brown tail barred with black.
- White outer tail feathers barred with black.
- Underparts white to cinnamon buff, heavily streaked or spotted with black, heaviest on chest.
- Dark bill long and thin with silvery base to lower mandible.
Statute
Arizona Revised Statutes, Title 41, Chapter 4.1, Article 5, Section 41-854.
Title 41 - State Government.
Chapter 4.1 - HISTORY, ARCHAEOLOGY AND STATE EMBLEMS.
Article 5 - State Emblems.
41-854. State bird The cactus wren, otherwise known as Coues' cactus wren or heleodytes brunneicapillus
couesi (Sharpe) shall be the state bird.
Taxonomic Hierarchy of the Cactus Wren
| Kingdom |
Animalia -- animals |
| Phylum |
Chordata -- chordates |
| Subphylum |
Vertebrata -- vertebrates |
| Class |
Aves -- birds |
| Order |
Passeriformes -- perching birds |
| Family |
Certhiidae -- creepers |
| Genus |
Campylorhynchus Spix, 1824 -- cactus wrens |
| Species |
Campylorhynchus brunneicapillus (Lafresnaye, 1835) -- cactus wren, Cactus
Wren |
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Official State Birds
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Bird:
a. Any of the class Aves of warm-blooded, egg-laying, feathered vertebrates with forelimbs modified to form wings.
b. Such an animal hunted as game.
c. Such an animal, especially a chicken or turkey, used as food
State Bird:
a. Bird selected (as by the legislature) as an emblem of a state of the United States.
NOTE: Many states have more than one official bird, or have designate state birds more specifically.
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