Long-tailed fiscal

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Long-tailed fiscal
Juvenile Long-tailed Fiscals.jpg
Juveniles
Long-tailed fiscal, Lanius cabanisi.jpg
Adult
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Laniidae
Genus: Lanius
Species:
L. cabanisi
Binomial name
Lanius cabanisi
Hartert, 1906

The long-tailed fiscal (Lanius cabanisi) is a species of bird in the shrike family Laniidae. The species is closely related to the more widespread grey-backed fiscal and is sometimes placed in a separate subgenus, Neolanius, with that species. It is found in southern Somalia, southern and south-eastern Kenya, from the shores of Lake Victoria to the coast; and northern and eastern Tanzania south to Dar es Salaam, with a separate population at Usanga Flats. Its natural habitat is open dry habitats such as dry, treeless savanna, open woodland and cultivated patches. [2]

Contents

This conspicuous fiscal can often be seen in small groups perching in the open especially noticeable on telegraph poles and wires. It characteristically waggles its long tail from side to side excitedly. It can be distinguished from the common fiscal, Lanius collaris, by its gray back and more robust shape. [3]

Description

Like many shrike species the appearance of the adults is similar between the sexes but strikingly different in juvenile birds. Adult birds are between 26 and 30 cm (10–12 in) in length and weigh between 69 and 80 g (2.4–2.8 oz) (with males averaging slightly heavier). They are large and robust with, as the name suggests, very long graduated tails and typical strong heavy bills. [2] Moreover, L. cabanisi is more compact, and has less slim feet than L. collaris.

Behaviour

The long-tailed fiscal feeds on insects, particularly beetles and grasshoppers, as well as small vertebrates such as lizards, snakes and bird chicks. It occurs as single birds or in small groups and hunts in the typical fashion for a shrike, perched about two metres off the ground where it watches for and then dives onto prey. Prey is usually taken from the ground and sometimes from foliage, but only rarely from the air. [2] The species has been reported to have a mutualistic relationship with red-billed buffalo weavers in Tsavo in Kenya. The long-tailed fiscal benefits from associating with the weavers by snatching grasshoppers and other insects flushed by the foraging weavers, and the weavers benefited from the alarm calls made by the more vigilant fiscals. [2] [4]

Related Research Articles

Shrike Family of birds

Shrikes are carnivorous passerine birds of the family Laniidae. The family is composed of 33 species in four genera.

Great grey shrike Species of bird

The great grey shrike is a large songbird species in the shrike family (Laniidae). It forms a superspecies with its parapatric southern relatives, the Iberian grey shrike, the Chinese grey shrike and the American loggerhead shrike. Males and females are similar in plumage, pearly grey above with a black eye-mask and white underparts.

Lesser grey shrike Species of bird

The lesser grey shrike is a member of the shrike family Laniidae. It breeds in South and Central Europe and western Asia in the summer and migrates to winter quarters in southern Africa in the early autumn, returning in spring. It is a scarce vagrant to western Europe, including Great Britain, usually as a spring or autumn erratic.

Long-tailed shrike Species of bird

The long-tailed shrike or rufous-backed shrike is a member of the bird family Laniidae, the shrikes. They are found widely distributed across Asia and there are variations in plumage across the range. The species ranges across much of Asia, both on the mainland and the eastern archipelagos. The eastern or Himalayan subspecies, L. s. tricolor, is sometimes called the black-headed shrike. Although there are considerable differences in plumage among the subspecies, they all have a long and narrow black tail, have a black mask and forehead, rufous rump and flanks and a small white patch on the shoulder. It is considered to form a superspecies with the grey-backed shrike which breeds on the Tibetan Plateau.

Loggerhead shrike Species of bird

The loggerhead shrike is a passerine bird in the family Laniidae. It is one of two members of the shrike family endemic to North America; the related northern shrike occurs north of its range. It is nicknamed the butcherbird after its carnivorous tendencies, as it consumes prey such as amphibians, insects, lizards, small mammals and small birds, and some prey end up displayed and stored at a site, for example in a tree. Due to its small size and weak talons, this predatory bird relies on impaling its prey upon thorns or barbed wire for facilitated consumption. The numbers of loggerhead shrike have significantly decreased in recent years, especially in Midwestern, New England and Mid-Atlantic areas.

Masked shrike Migratory bird in the family Laniidae

The masked shrike is a bird in the shrike family, Laniidae. It breeds in southeastern Europe and at the eastern end of the Mediterranean, with a separate population in eastern Iraq and western Iran. It is migratory, wintering mainly in northeast Africa. Although it is a short-range migrant, vagrants have occurred widely elsewhere, including northern and western Europe. It is the smallest member of its genus, long-tailed and with a hooked bill. The male has mainly black upperparts, with white on its crown, forehead and supercilium and large white patches on the shoulders and wings. The throat, neck sides and underparts are white, with orange flanks and breast. The female is a duller version of the male, with brownish black upperparts and a grey or buff tone to the shoulders and underparts. The juvenile has grey-brown upperparts with a paler forehead and barring from the head to rump, barred off-white underparts and brown wings аpart from the white primary patches. The species' calls are short and grating, but the song has melodic warbler-like components.

Bay-backed shrike Species of bird

The bay-backed shrike is a member of the bird family Laniidae, the shrikes, resident in South Asia.

<i>Lanius</i> Genus of birds

Lanius, the typical shrikes, are a genus of passerine birds in the shrike family Laniidae. The majority of the family's species are placed in this genus. The genus name, Lanius, is derived from the Latin word for "butcher", and some shrikes are also known as "butcher birds" because of their feeding habits. The common English name "shrike" is from Old English scríc, "shriek", referring to the shrill call.

Tiger shrike Species of bird

The tiger shrike or thick-billed shrike is a small passerine bird which belongs to the genus Lanius in the shrike family, Laniidae. It is found in wooded habitats across eastern Asia. It is a shy, often solitary bird which is less conspicuous than most other shrikes. Like other shrikes it is predatory, feeding on small animals. Its nest is built in a tree and three to six eggs are laid.

Southern fiscal species of bird

The southern fiscal, common fiscal or fiscal shrike is a member of the shrike family found through most of Sub-Saharan Africa. It is also sometimes named jackie hangman or butcher bird due to its habit of impaling its prey on acacia thorns to store the food for later consumption. It was previously lumped together with the northern fiscal. Together they were known as the common fiscal.

Bokmakierie Species of bird

The bokmakierie is a bushshrike. This family of passerine birds is closely related to the true shrikes in the family Laniidae, and was once included in that group. This species is endemic to southern Africa, mainly in South Africa and Namibia, with an isolated population in the mountains of eastern Zimbabwe and western Mozambique.

Taita fiscal Species of bird

The Taita fiscal or Teita fiscal is a member of the shrike family found in east Africa from southeastern South Sudan, southern Ethiopia, and western Somalia to northeastern Tanzania. Its habitat is dry open thornbush and acacia and other dry open woodland.

Bull-headed shrike Species of bird

The bull-headed shrike is a passerine bird of eastern Asia belonging to the shrike family Laniidae.

Grey-backed fiscal Species of bird

The grey-backed fiscal is a species of bird in the family Laniidae. It is found in Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mali, Mauritania, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda. Its natural habitats are dry savanna and subtropical or tropical dry lowland grassland.

Uhehe fiscal Subspecies of bird

The Uhehe fiscal is a bird in the family Laniidae. It is endemic to the uplands of southern and eastern Tanzania. Some taxonomic authorities treat this species as a subspecies of the southern fiscal. Despite its small population size and restricted range, the International Union for Conservation of Nature has rated this species as being of "least concern".

Somali fiscal Species of bird

The Somali fiscal is a species of bird in the family Laniidae. Other common names include the Karoli fiscal, the Somali fiscal shrike and the Somali shrike. The bird is found in Djibouti, Ethiopia and Somalia in the Horn of Africa, as well as in Kenya in the African Great Lakes region. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical dry shrubland.

Grey-backed shrike Species of bird

The grey-backed shrike is a bird in the family Laniidae inhabiting South-east Asia.

Magpie shrike Species of bird

The magpie shrike, also known as the African long-tailed shrike, is a species of bird in the family Laniidae. It is monotypic within the genus Urolestes. It is native to the grasslands of eastern and southeastern Africa, where its natural habitats are dry savannah, moist savannah, and subtropical or tropical dry shrubland. It has a very wide range and is common in places, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has assessed its conservation status as being of "least concern".

Northern fiscal Species of bird

The northern fiscal is a member of the shrike family found through most of Sub-Saharan Africa. It used to be grouped with the southern fiscal. Together they were called the common fiscal.

References

  1. BirdLife International (2012). "Lanius cabanisi". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2012. Retrieved 26 November 2013.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Yosef, Reuven; Santana, Joana; Reino, Luís (2008). "Family Laniidae (Shrikes)". In Josep, del Hoyo; Andrew, Elliott; David, Christie (eds.). Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 13, Penduline-tits to Shrikes. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions. p. 789. ISBN   978-84-96553-45-3.
  3. "Long-tailed Fiscal, Lanius cabanisi". Kenyabirds.org.uk. Archived from the original on 2013-03-06. Retrieved 2013-07-10.
  4. Brosset, A (1989). "Shrike (Lanius cabanisi ) - buffalo weaver (Bubalornis niger ) mutualism". Rev. Ecol. (Terre Vie) (in French and English). 43 (1): 103–106.

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