The rock wren (Salpinctes obsoletus) is a small songbird of the wren family native to the rocky areas of western North America. There are 8 subspecies of the rock wren, one of which is extinct. They are similar in size to other wrens, with a grey-brown coat, a brown rump, and a speckled white throat.
They are visually similar to the canyon wren, which they share a habitat with. They are noted for their variable song and song pattern, used for territory defense, as well as their habit of building "pavements" with flat rocks around their nest to help nestlings stay dry. Rock wrens are serially monogamous, forming pairs for nesting season. Nestbuilding usually begins in March, usually in crevices, and the first brood are laid late April to June, with a possible second brood later in June.
They are largely terrestrial foragers, rarely flying. Their diet consists of insects, mostly weevils, during the spring and summer, shifting to grain during autumn and winter. Though they are a least-concern species, their population size has declined by 13% from 2010 to 2020.
Taxonomy<!-- done -->
The rock wren was first described by Thomas Say, published in Edwin James' book Account of an Expedition from Pittsburgh to the Rocky Mountains, as Troglodytes obsoleta. The work was available in 1822, even though the date printed on the title page is 1823; 1822 thus counts as the date of description of the species. It was later moved to its own monotypic genus, Salpinctes, by Jean Cabanis in 1847, because of its straighter tail. Salpinctes formerly included the canyon wren (synonym Thryothorus mexicanus), but it was later removed.