Its specific name ludovicianus is a post-classical Latin term for Ludovicus (derivative from Louis XIV) that means 'of Louisiana' that identifies the locality of the specimen collected near New Orleans.

For T. l. ludovicianus, the crown is rich brown that appears more chestnut-colored on its rump and upper tail coverts.

T. l. burleighi is duller and sootier with less distinct tail markings, T. l. mesophilus has paler underparts and a whiter supercilium, and T. l. tropicalis is darker than all races, and contains heavier bars than T. l.

In a survival probability mark-and-recapture study conducted within the Southeastern United States from 1992 to 2003, roughly 90 percent of the banded wrens died within 10 years.

[3][20] In certain parts of their range, such as most of Iowa, prolonged periods of snow can curtail potential expansion.

[17] Local occurrences with infrequent and likely breeding locations include southeast South Dakota, central Kansas, eastern Colorado, western Oklahoma and Texas as far as Maine and New Brunswick.

[17] There have been occasional vagrants spotted in Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona, Wyoming, South Dakota, Manitoba, Nova Scotia, and the Gulf of St.

[3][23] The preferred habitats are riparian forest, brushy edges, swamps, overgrown farmland, and suburban yards with abundant thick shrubs and trees, and parks.

[3][23] Carolina wrens sing year round and at any point during the daytime, with the exception of performing during the most harsh weather conditions.

[26] Female Carolina wrens possess song control regions that would appear to make them capable of singing with repertoires like the male.

Due to vocalizations that they occasionally make with the male, it has been suggested that song perception plays a role and is of behavioral relevance.

The courting and antagonistic encounters that involve the tail fanning and wing drooping was suggested to be a possible signaling use.

Age and life experience are not thought of as significant for potential mates due to their relatively short lifespan and sedentary lifestyle.

One aspect of territorial defense involves identifying the proximity of the threat based on the loudness of bird song as well as the level of degradation of the calls.

In spring, the wrens respond more aggressively toward neighbors, though in the fall, no major discrepancy in responses is shown.

The wrens judge the size of the potential threat, such as a blue jay and avoid the risk of injury when attacking.

[31] Both males and females utilize calls in alarm situations, especially in territorial disputes and encounters with predators.

The former can be used in territorial disputes with predators, and with at least northern populations the songs are used in alternation with the males cheer chant.

[24][32] Carolina wrens spend the majority of their time on or near the ground searching for food, or in tangles of vegetation and vines.

They also probe bark crevices on lower tree levels, or pick up leaf-litter in order to search for prey.

Their diet consists of invertebrates, such as beetles, true bugs, grasshoppers, katydids, spiders, ants, bees, and wasps.

[33] The wrens also displays a skittish behavior when encountered by humans, as they can be seen thrusting off into cover slowly if approaching is detected.

They are also capable of flying vertically from the base of a tree to the top in a single wing assisted bound.

[3] It has been suggested that the possibility of desertion and decline in care-taking from males along with the need for security in resources year-round prevent extra pair copulations from females, as the mortality rate for Carolina wrens peaks during the winter.

[35] The nests are arch-shaped structures with a side entrance and built of dried plants or strips of bark, as well as horsehair, string, wool and snake sloughs.

Nests are located in fragmented or complete cavities in trees, or in man-made structures such as bird-boxes, buildings, tin cans, mailboxes or unorthodox places such as pockets of hanging jackets in sheds or in a tractor in everyday use.

[3][14] The eggs are creamy white with brown or reddish-brown spots, and are more heavily marked at the broad end.

[17] In Virginia, some Carolina wrens populations show high levels of mercury in their blood and this is acquired from feeding all-year-round on spiders.

[38] Exposure, and prolonged periods of cold, ice, and snow is thought to affect the wren nestling and adult populations, respectively.

[16] Among the top predators of adult Carolina wrens are domestic cats, and snakes such as the timber rattlesnake.