Iberian grey shrike

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Iberian grey shrike
Lanius meridionalis, Pera, Algarve, Portugal 1 (cropped).jpg
Lanius meridionalis in

Algarve, Portugal

Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Clade: Dinosauria
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Laniidae
Genus: Lanius
Species:
L. meridionalis
Binomial name
Lanius meridionalis
Temminck, 1820

The Iberian grey shrike (Lanius meridionalis) is a member of the shrike family. It is closely related to the great grey shrike, Lanius excubitor, and its plumage is generally similar to the great grey shrike apart from the differences noted below. The Iberian was previously considered conspecific with the great grey; where they co-occur, they do not interbreed and are separated by choice of habitat. [2]

Contents

Taxonomy and systematics

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 specific meridionalis is Latin for "southern". [3] The common English name "shrike" is from Old English scríc, "shriek", referring to the shrill call. [4]

It is resident in southern Europe. It is slightly smaller and darker than the great grey shrike, and prefers dry open country.

Behaviour and ecology

Eggs of Lanius meridionalis - MHNT Lanius meridionalis MHNT.ZOO.2010.11.211.jpg
Eggs of Lanius meridionalis - MHNT

This medium-sized passerine bird eats large insects, small birds and rodents. Like other shrikes it hunts from prominent perches, and impales corpses on thorns or barbed wire as a "larder".

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shrike</span> Family of birds

Shrikes are passerine birds of the family Laniidae. The family is composed of 34 species in two genera.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Great grey shrike</span> Species of bird

The great grey shrike is a large and predatory 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Red-backed shrike</span> Species of bird

The red-backed shrike is a carnivorous passerine bird and member of the shrike family, Laniidae. Its breeding range stretches from Western Europe east to central Russia. It is migratory and winters in the eastern areas of tropical Africa and southern Africa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Woodchat shrike</span> Species of bird

The woodchat shrike is a member of the shrike family Laniidae. It can be identified by its red-brown crown and nape. It is mainly insectivorous and favours open wooded areas with scattered trees such as orchards, particularly when there is bare or sandy ground. The woodchat shrike breeds in southern Europe, the Middle East and northwest Africa, and winters in tropical Africa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Isabelline shrike</span> Species of bird

The isabelline shrike or Daurian shrike is a member of the shrike family (Laniidae). It was previously considered conspecific with the red-backed shrike and red-tailed shrike. It is found in an extensive area between the Caspian Sea and north and central China southeast to the Qaidam Basin. Overwinters in Africa and Arabia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lesser grey shrike</span> 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northern shrike</span> Species of bird

The northern shrike is a large songbird species in the shrike family (Laniidae) native to North America and Siberia. Long considered a subspecies of the great grey shrike, it was classified as a distinct species in 2017. Six subspecies are recognised.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Long-tailed shrike</span> 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Loggerhead shrike</span> Species of bird

The loggerhead shrike is a passerine bird in the family Laniidae. It is the only member of the shrike family endemic to North America; the related northern shrike occurs north of its range, however it is also found in Siberia. It is nicknamed the butcherbird after its carnivorous tendencies, as it consumes prey such as insects, amphibians, 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brown shrike</span> Species of bird

The brown shrike is a bird in the shrike family that is found mainly in Asia. It is closely related to the red-backed shrike and isabelline shrike. 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 specific cristatus is Latin for "crested", used in a broader sense than in English. The common English name "shrike" is from Old English scríc, "shriek", referring to the shrill call.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Masked shrike</span> Migratory bird in the family Laniidae

The masked shrike is a species of 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black-headed bulbul</span> Species of bird

The black-headed bulbul is a member of the bulbul family, Pycnonotidae. It is found in forests in south-eastern 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tiger shrike</span> 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Southern boubou</span> Species of bird

The southern boubou is a bushshrike. Though these passerine birds and their relations were once included with true shrikes in the Laniidae, they are not closely related to that family.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taita fiscal</span> 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bull-headed shrike</span> Species of bird

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

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steppe grey shrike</span> Large songbird subspecies in the shrike family

The steppe grey shrike is a large subspecies of songbird in the shrike family (Laniidae) native to Central Asia and parts of northern China, Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan. Formerly considered a subspecies of the southern grey shrike complex, it is now classified as a subspecies of the great grey shrike.

The southern grey shrike is a former species of shrike that has been split or reassigned to the following:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arabian great shrike</span> Subspecies of bird

The Arabian great shrike is a non-migratory subspecies of the great grey shrike found mainly in the Arabian peninsula. Formerly considered a subspecies of the southern grey shrike complex, it is now classified as a subspecies of the great grey shrike.

References

  1. BirdLife International (2017). "Lanius meridionalis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2017: e.T22729533A118845180. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-3.RLTS.T22729533A118845180.en . Retrieved 18 November 2021.
  2. Sangster, George; Knox, Alan G.; Helbig, Andreas J. & Parkin, David T. (2002): Taxonomic recommendations for European birds. Ibis 144(1): 153–159. doi : 10.1046/j.0019-1019.2001.00026.x PDF fulltext
  3. Jobling, James A (2010). The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. London: Christopher Helm. pp.  219, 251. ISBN   978-1-4081-2501-4.
  4. "Shrike" . Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press.(Subscription or participating institution membership required.)

Bibliography

Identification