Impurest's Guide to Animals #142 - Great Grey Shrike

Welcome dear victims er I mean readers to ‘Shocktober’, the time of year where I bring out the foulest and worst behaved members of the animal kingdom for viewing. Last week was the last cuddly issue (the Striped Polecat) until November. This week we will meet a butcher who hangs its victims on hooks and thorns, hope you guys enjoy.

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Issue #142 - Great Grey Shrike

Kingdom – Animalia

Phylum – Chordata

Class – Aves

Order – Passeriformes

Family – Laniidae

Genus – Lanius

Species – excubitor

Related Species – The Great Grey Shrike is one of over twenty species found in the genus Lanius. (1)

Range

The Butcher of the North

Great Grey or Northern Shrikes, as medium sized perching birds with an average body length of about 24cm, and a weight anywhere between 40 to 80 grams. The shrike is covered in light grey plumage accented by a black tail, black and white barring on the wings as well as across the eye. The beak of a great grey shrike is also black, although the base of the lower mandible is very pale in contrast with the upper jaw, and is hooked and heavily built to aid in the capture and dismantling of prey, since the bird lacks the raptorial feet found in birds of prey and in owls.

Great grey shrikes are predators which feed on a wide variety of prey species, ranging from rodents and other small mammals, large insects, small birds, reptiles and even toads and salamanders. Terrestrial prey is often spotted from a sentry point in a tree, or during periods of hovering and is seized by the feet and quickly dispatched with the bird’s beak, while birds are caught by seizing their feet with the beak to ground them. Large or particular toxic prey, such as toads and grasshoppers, are often placed on thorns or barbed wire fences to be ripped apart, or matured since as mentioned above the shrike finds it difficult to rip prey apart by itself. In addition such grisly larders may also contain ‘cached’ food to act as emergency supplies, to support the shrike’s high metabolism (2), should the bird have days where it is unsuccessful while hunting.

The great grey shrike’s courtship and mating begins in March and continues to the beginning of May. Initially the male shrike is rebuffed by the female, but eventually by bringing her food as well as singing and displaying the marking on his wings, the female relents and the pair build a nest together. After copulation the male stays close to ensure the female and the eggs stay safe from predation, and will take-over incubation when the female leaves to feed. After three weeks the eggs hatch, and the parent shrikes spend the next month bringing the chicks food until they fledge, and will even continue to feed struggling fledglings for another month after that if necessary (3).

Five Fun Great Grey Shrike Facts

The Latin name of the Great Grey Shrike Lanius excubitor translates to ‘the Butcher Sentinel’ an apt name considering the hunting behaviour of this bird.

The term ‘shrike’ is a relatively new one when related to this bird, historically the bird has gone by many different names across its European range; Choking Angel in Germany, Magpie Killer in Switzerland and Greater Butcher Bird in England and France to name just a few.

Shrikes are not the only birds to construct larders, the unrelated Butcher Birds of Australia will also cache prey by leaving it in the branch fork of a tree away from potential thieves.

Great Grey Shrikes have another trick to help catch songbirds. The shrike will take up a sentinel post and mimic the call of its chosen prey species to lure them closer to its position before striking.

Despite this, Great Grey Shrikes will often nest closely to Fieldfares (Turduspilaris), and will work cooperate to chase crows, gulls and birds of prey away from their nests.

Bibliography

1 -www.arkive.org

2 - http://genomics.senescence.info/species/entry.php?species=Lanius_excubitor

3 - Harris, Tony & Franklin, Kim (2000): Shrikes & bush-shrikes: including wood-shrikes, helmet-shrikes, flycatcher-shrikes, philentomas, batises and wattle-eyes. Christopher Helm, London.

Picture References

1 - http://www.birdingworld.co.uk/images/GreatGreyShrike04.01_11_2007%20copy.jpg

2 - http://www.oiseaux.net/maps/images/pie-grieche.grise.png

3 - https://c1.staticflickr.com/7/6114/6349154507_f801f07864_b.jpg

4 - https://toughlittlebirds.files.wordpress.com/2012/10/northern_shrikepine_siskin.jpg

Well it’s no point being hung up on the grotesque details of this issue as we head deeper into Shocktober. Next week we are meeting an unusual vampire, but until then make sure to critic, comment and suggest future issues as well as making sure you check past issues in Impurest’s Bestiary.

Many Thanks

Impurest Cheese

Want more IGTA? For more birds behaving badly, click here to witness the piratical behaviour of the Great Skua. Or for something even more blood thirsty, click here to see the Mockingbird that has developed a taste for human blood.

@cbishop, @laflux, @ostyo, @wildvine, @luna_joestar, @xwraith, @cgoodness, @ms-lola,@dboyrules2011,@quinnofthestoneage,@scavengerfist,@rocketraccoonthingy,@black_wreath,

@captainmarvel4ever,@spareheadone,@cpt_nice,@risingbean,@pipxeroth,@theik2,

@avatar_of_green,@tsciallsolle3451,@galactic_1000,@juiceboks,@jamiewolfe7,@heroup2112,@blueecho,

@dshipp17, @anna_karenina and @crash_

The Butcher is in!!!

Beautiful.

@impurestcheese: This was actually one of my favorite type of birds to look for, back when I used to Bird Watch often. I always found it really cool how it occupied the same role as birds of prey, of course while being smaller than most species.

@galactic_1000: Also barbarous and brutal. In fact lots of 'b' words come to mind when talking about shrikes

@laflux:Cool, glad you enjoyed it. And it is strange how they wandered into the niche they are in when they have to compete with things like kestrels and owls.

I guess the behavioral adaptations of Shrikes are enough for them to thrive without them experiencing competitive exclusion. Plus, Shrikes are diurnal while most owls are nocturnal or crepuscular, so that might help.

@laflux: Hmm possibly, although Little Owls are some of the most prolific predators of shrikes so there is an overlap between the two groups

Wow TIL :D

@laflux: No problem, I'm here to inform

Good stuff these shrikes

One of the most practical predatory strategies in the animal kingdom IMO. It works well enough for Jaguars, so I'm not surprised some birds have adopted it as well.

Now, that's an interesting combination of viciousness and ingenuity, huh?

@destinyman75: Depends if you happen to be a prey species. Thanks for the comment

@juiceboks: I assume we are talking about caching food right? Lots of animals do it, few do it as visibly as shrikes do

@anna_karenina: Yes, a very interesting combination indeed. Thanks for the comment

Welcome to Shocktober folks! Wow, that's an interesting picture...of a mouse...hungry little bird.

@heroup2112: Well it did kill the mouse and store it in a tree for hours, and its now using the thorns to rip it apart. Besides this is the warm up act, have more monstrous creatures in store for the rest of the month

@impurestcheese: I kind of assumed it was the warm up act. ;)

@heroup2112: Ah okay

That was a compliment. You provide good anticipation, not redundancy ;)

@heroup2112: Thanks

@impurestcheese: Shrikes are songbirds that happen to be predators. That's quite interesting. So birds of prey, owls, and shrikes for the predators of the bird world.

Lovely borb ^_^

@xlr87t3: Corvids too. Ravens and Crows whilst omnivores also feed on live prey such as small mammals, reptiles and birds. Come to think of it herons and pelicans will also feed on non fish vertebrate prey when they get the chance.

@bb_ryder: Borb? Is that a bird/blog hybrid? :-)

@impurestcheese: It is now : D

Corvids are songbirds like Shrikes, but they aren't specifically predators so they aren't worth mentioning. Herons and Pelicans mainly eat fish and stuff so I don't count count that as carnivorous. When I say predators, I mean stuff like wolves, cats, alligators, hawks, ect.

That is an impressive range

@impurestcheese: Kewwwwlllll. I really enjoy these. :)

@bb_ryder: Then trade mark it quick

@xlr87t3: Half of a raven's diet comes from small mammals it catches, but I see where you are coming from. There are a few other birds that are predators such as roadrunners and seriemas (the later is attempting to devolve back into a velociraptor) but both are ground birds rather than ariel predators

@blueecho: It is indeed, the Great Grey Shrike is quite adaptable and can thrive in environments as different as arboreal forest down to savannas and mediteranian habitats

@ficopedia:That;s good because I really enjoy writing them

I like it's name.

@ostyo: Yeah it is a cool name

I sense that October has arrived! Shrikes are awesome :D

@jamiewolfe7: It has indeed

When I came across the title of this segment, I assumed it would be about the new official bird of Canada. I got a little excited after reading it, thinking we'd be cool enough to pick a bird like this but alas, of course I was wrong and confused it with the Grey Jay. The only thing controversial about it is its alternate spelling "Gray" Jay which has a few Canadians' feathers ruffled. (heh heh...is this mic on?)

Anyway, this bird is incredible. I love how something so innocuous looking could be so vicious.