Great Gray Shrike Lanius excubitor Scientific name definitions

24–25 cm; 48–81 g. A rather large shrike with medium-length tail; white of scapulars, wing and tail conspicuous in flight. Male nominate race has narrow black mask (thin dark area above bill barely noticeable) extending to rear of ear-coverts, thin whitish supercilium (often indistinct or lacking); top of head, nape and upperparts to lower back pale grey with variable bluish tinge, rump and uppertail-coverts often slightly paler, scapulars white; upperwing black, prominent white patch across bases of primaries, often another (narrower) white patch at base of secondaries, flight-feathers and tertials tipped white; tail black, outer feather pair white (sometimes some black on inner web), adjacent rectrices with progressively decreasing amount of white; throat and underparts white, in fresh plumage occasionally a hint of pink tinge on breast; irides brown or dark brown; bill black; legs blackish. Distinguished from similar L. meridionalis mainly by much paler plumage, indistinct or non-existent supercilium, more white in wing, also by slightly longer wings, shorter and less robust bill, and shorter legs. Female is very like male but has less white in plumage (white wing patches slightly smaller; whitish tips of wing feathers narrower, scapulars with more grey tones), greyer (not so pure white) underparts sometimes with hint of vermiculations on upper breast. Male has also paler head, back without brown tones, significantly longer wing, longer tail and less black in outer rectrix than female, but body mass does not differ between the sexes. Juvenile is generally more brownish grey, usually faintly barred dark brown from nape to uppertail-coverts, with mask browner, greater coverts pale-tipped, whitish below, grey-brown wash on breast and flanks, narrowly vermiculated brown, bill brownish grey. Races differ mainly in plumage colour and pattern, and in body size: <em>homeyeri</em> is paler than nominate, rump and uppertail-coverts whitish, white supercilium more obvious, extensive white in wing, more white in tail (including at base of central pair of feathers); algeriensis is also similar to nominate, but paler above and greyer below, supercilium poorly indicated, bill thicker; koenigi is similar to previous but smaller, with wings and tail shorter, has supercilium clearer and longer, bill on average more strongly hooked; elegans is much paler than last, has underparts pure white, more white in scapulars, wing and tail; leucopygus is similar to previous but smaller, has rump and uppertail-coverts white, underparts more creamy, not so pure white; aucheri is very like elegans, but has narrow black band above base of bill, generally less white in wing and tail; theresae is similar to previous, but darker grey over much of body; buryi also is similar, but upperparts distinctly darker, throat and underparts also somewhat darker; uncinatus also similar, but has less white in scapulars, slightly longer bill; pallidirostris has very narrow mask, especially in front of eye, forehead pale, lores dusky, supercilium faint and not readily apparent against pale grey of crown; and lahtora is similar to aucheri, but with black frontal band distinct and relatively wide, more white in wing and tail, and larger bill.

Editor's Note: This article requires further editing work to merge existing content into the appropriate Subspecies sections. Please bear with us while this update takes place.

Until mid-1990s treated as conspecific with L. meridionalis, which then included taxa immediately to S. DNA study 1 Olsson, U., P. Alström, L. Svensson, M. Aliabadian, and P. Sundberg (2010). The Lanius excubitor (Aves, Passeriformes) conundrum—taxonomic dilemma when molecular and non-molecular data tell different stories. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 55(2):347–357. Close , however, suggests that meridionalis is monotypic and that Canarian, N African, Middle Eastern and Russian taxa (as far as R Yenisey) belong in present species, with race pallidirostris (sometimes considered a species, “Steppe Grey Shrike”) parapatric or even marginally sympatric with race mollis of L. borealis in Mongolia 2 Panov, E.N. (2011). The True Shrikes (Laniidae) of the World: Ecology, Behavior and Evolution. Pensoft, Sofia and Moscow. Close ; further changes expected with more complete genetic and vocal analyses. Race theresae sometimes subsumed into aucheri. Proposed race leucopterus (upper R Naryn, in Kyrgyzstan) synonymized with homeyeri, and jebelmarrae (SW Sudan) with leucopygus. Last-mentioned is often misspelt leucopygos, but original was written in ablative case, “Lanio leucopygo”, which must be emended to corresponding nominate form, leucopygus; author of this taxon is Ehrenberg (not with Hemprich) 3 Dickinson, E. C., L. K. Overstreet, R. J. Dowsett, and M. D. Bruce (2011). Priority! The Dating of Scientific Names in Ornithology: A Directory to the Literature and its Reviewers. Aves Press, Northampton, UK. Close . Twelve subspecies provisionally recognized.

Editor's Note: Additional distribution information for this taxon can be found in the 'Subspecies' article above. In the future we will develop a range-wide distribution article.

Breeds in subarctic and temperate climates in open country with trees, bushes , fence posts and powerlines; N populations in clearings in taiga or in transition zone from taiga to tundra and forest edge; sometimes also on marshland and peat bogs. Sparse and low vegetation is an important component, typical perch densities in C & N Europe 5–15 perches/ha. Suitable perches are provided by isolated trees, small groves, bushes, and also pylons, electric wires and fences. Habitats used in non-breeding areas similar to those when breeding, but meadows more important outside breeding season. Wintering birds in Poland preferentially roosted for the night in willows (Salix spp.) that had large volume, a high density of stems and were isolated from other shrubs and trees 5 Antczak, M. (2010). Winter nocturnal roost selection by a solitary passerine bird, the Great Grey Shrike, Lanius excubitor. Ornis Fennica. 87(3): 99–105. Close .

Most populations migratory or at least partially so, non-breeding range including S parts of breeding range in addition to more S areas. Movements only of European populations are relatively well known; most leave breeding areas during Jul–Oct, mainly Sept–Oct, spend c. 4–5 months in non-breeding quarters, and return mainly Mar–Apr. In general, European populations migrate to wintering grounds in regions S  of 60° N. Many of those breeding in SW Europe appear largely sedentary compared with populations further E. Asian populations migrate mainly to areas in SW, C & E Asia, but recorded also as rare vagrants in N & W Europe. Strictly an uncommon winter visitor to the UK, with c. 4650 records reported between 1986 and 2015, and evidence of an increase in numbers since 1990 6 White, S., and C. Kehoe (2017). Report on scarce migrant birds in Britain in 2015. Part 2: passerines. British Birds 110(11):645–665. Close . Some evidence suggesting changes in migratory strategy of some populations during recent decades, e.g. increasing numbers of individuals remaining in S Fennoscandia and Poland in winter. Race pallidirostris a long-distance migrant, but some of its S populations strictly sedentary; regular migrants winter in S & SW parts of breeding range, but can reach E Sudan, Ethiopia, N Somalia and Eritrea, leave breeding grounds in Sept, returning Mar–Apr; vagrants recorded W to Britain, E to South Korea 7 Moores, N. (2007). Selected records from Socheong Island, South Korea. Forktail 23: 102–124. Close  and S to Borneo. Some desert races, and also nominate race in France, make regular small movements, and race elegans recorded has been recorded as a vagrant on the Cape Verdes (Jan 1997) 8 Hazevoet, C.J. (1998). Third annual report on birds from the Cape Verde Islands, including records of seven taxa new to the archipelago. Bull. Zoöl. Mus. Univ. Amsterdam. 16(9): 65–71. Close  while the species has also wandered to Annobon in the Gulf of Guinea 9 Pérez del Val, J. (2001). A survey of birds of Annobón Island, Equatorial Guinea: preliminary report. Bull. Afr. Bird Club. 8(1): 54. Close ; nominate mainly resident, but dispersal by young can exceed 200 km.

Highly opportunistic and flexible in use of different food spectra, as well as in hunting tactics. Diet consists mainly of small vertebrates  and large arthropods . Voles (Microtinae) appear to be most frequent vertebrate prey (e.g. Microtus arvalis) 10 Lefranc, N. and Paul, J.-P. (2011). La Pie-grièche grise Lanius excubitor en France: historique et statut récent en période de nidification. Ornithos. 18(5): 261–276. Close , usually in excess of 50% (sometimes as much as 90%) of total biomass taken; small birds, shrews (Soricidae), lizards  and frogs also relatively frequent prey. Large insects (seldom more than 15% of total biomass consumed) chiefly beetles (Coleoptera), grasshoppers and crickets (Orthoptera), and wasps and bees (Hymenoptera); various other insects and invertebrates recorded as food, including arachnids, worms (Oligochaeta), snails (Gastropoda) and crayfish (Decapoda), as well as moths caught at night taking advantage of streetlights 11 Tryjanowski, P. and Lorek, G. (1998). Common Kestrels and Great Grey Shrike hunting insects by artificial light. British Birds. 91(8): 327. Close . Carrion occasionally recorded; also small fruits, e.g. Lycium shawii in Arabia 12 Al-Sirhan, A. (2015). Migrating and wintering birds feeding on berries of Arabian Boxthorn Lycium shawii bushes in Kuwait. Sandgrouse. 37(1): 60–70. Close . Diet may vary, subtly but importantly, over quite small geographic distances, e.g. race algeriensis in N Morocco is more dependent on coleopterans, whereas elegans in S of country takes far more orthopterans, although both subspecies predate hymenopterans in roughly equal quantities 13 Taibi, A., Ababsa, L., Bendjoudi, D., Doumandji, S., Guezoul, O. and Lepley, M. (2009). [Diets of two subspecies of the Southern Grey Shrike Lanius meridionalis in Maghreb]. Alauda. 77(4): 281–285. Close . Usually forages and perches alone , or partners feed in close proximity to each other. Uses sit-and-wait technique. Utilizes variety of lookout perches 2–15 m high, including wires, fence lines, tree branches; dives down onto prey on ground. Also, very often hovers in manner of a kestrel (Falco) and, in case of Lepidoptera and birds, will pursue airborne prey 14 Probst, R. (2006). Is singing by escaping Sky Larks a Merlin-specific signal? British Birds. 99(5): 267–268. Close . Experimental evidence suggests they can use cues from UV-reflecting vole scent marks to locate suitable hunting areas 15 Probst, R., Pavlicev, M. and Viitala, J. (2002). UV reflecting vole scent marks attract a passerine, the Great Grey Shrike Lanius exubitor. Journal of Avian Biology. 33(4): 437–440. Close . Very frequently impales prey  , although some individuals impale more regularly in larders than others. Prey transported in bill or feet, the birds sometimes transferring prey from bill to feet in flight 16 Probst, R., Wegleitner, S. and Schmid, R. (2003). Relationship of vertebrate prey size to transport mode and distance in the Northern Shrike. Wilson Bull.. 115(2): 201–204. Close . During mating period, males impaled more prey before mating than they did afterwards, the majority of cached prey was on borders of territories and in visible places, and a large part of the food was left uneaten, all of which indicates that during mating period impaling behaviour has a signalling function. During breeding stages, in contrast, impaling was used primarily as a means of storing food: distance from larders to nests decreased, more prey were stored in well-concealed sites, and larger proportion of stored food was consumed.

Song  consists of short, repeated verses, interrupted by longer intervals of silence; usually introduced with “trrr” or “prrr” notes, mixed with calls used for contact, “tülick, tlüch, chlü, chluip, trü”, and begging “kwää”, and also contains “kiet” or “triet” notes and imitated songs of other species. Immature has less vocal song, with many atonal “trrr” and “prrr” sounds. Most elements of song used also as calls, e.g. “trrr” (sometimes varied to “trrr-tr-tr-trrr”) for alarm, but different alarm, “ääk”, “kwää” or “wäääk”, used in parent-offspring interactions; in territorial conflicts between males “ghirr” recorded. Notes  such as “kwiet” and “triet”, also more vocal “chlüp”, “tlück” or “tluick”, in courtship behaviour; also in duets by partners, “chlü”-“ip” or “triet”-“chlüp”, sometimes first note given by one partner and second by other partner, or both notes by just one of the two, followed by two notes by the other.

Lays from end of Mar to end of May, replacement clutches to early Jul; Mar–Jun in C Europe; one brood, very rarely two; season on Socotra (race uncinatus) Oct–Apr 17 Porter, R. F., and A. S. Suleiman (2013). The populations and distribution of the breeding birds of the Socotra archipelago, Yemen: 1. Sandgrouse to buntings. Sandgrouse 35(1):43–81. Close . Monogamous, but very rarely polygyny also observed. Strictly territorial breeder. Nest built by both sexes, a well-made structure with loose foundation of twigs, grass, rootlets, string, etc., often with high proportion of green plants, lined with rootlets, feathers and hair, placed generally high above ground (mean of 401 nests in C Europe 15·5 m) in fork or on lateral branch of tree, mainly pine (Pinus) or poplar (Populus), sometimes in dense shrub and therefore much lower (down to 0·2 m above ground); territory size 20–350 ha. Clutch 3–9 eggs (usually 6–7 in Europe), pale bluish green, with olive-brown spots concentrated at broad end; frequent replacements if previous clutch lost; incubation mainly by female, fed on and off nest by male, period 14–19 days, mostly 15–17 days; chicks brooded by female, fed initially mostly by male, later by both sexes more equally, nestling period 14–21 days, generally 15–19 days; young accompanied by parents for c. 3 weeks or more, leave natal territory usually 6–7 weeks (sometimes c. 1 month) after fledging. Nests formerly parasitized by Common Cuckoo (Cuculus canorus) in Europe, but no such records since late 1970s until an instance was documented in France in 2016 18 Petit, R. (2017). Parasitisme de la Pie-grieche grise Lanius excubitor par le Coucou gris Cuculus canorus dans le Massif Central (Correze, France). Alauda. 85(1): 73–74. Close . Breeding success varies with locality and from year to year, and is 40–55% in optimal conditions in C Europe, 3·9–6·3 young fledged per pair, and rarely nine chicks raised from single brood; in contrast, in deserts of S Israel, mean clutch size is 3·44, mean number of nestlings 1·95 and mean number that fledged just 1·24 19 Keynan, O. and Yosef, R. (2010). Annual precipitation affects reproduction of the Southern Grey Shrike (Lanius meridionalis). Wilson J. Orn.. 122(2): 334–339. Close . First breeding in second calendar-year.

Not globally threatened (Least Concern). Until recently treated as conspecific with L. meridionalis and separate evaluation first carried out in 2017. Locally common to uncommon. Global population has not been quantified. Fennoscandian and Russian stronghold contains at least 330,000 breeding pairs, and future Russian censuses may reveal greater numbers; maximum density of 33 pairs/100 km² in traditional farmland. Populations in rest of Europe relatively insignificant (13,000 pairs in C & E Europe, 3400 pairs in W Europe, of which c. 1000 pairs are in France, most of those in the Massif Central) 10 Lefranc, N. and Paul, J.-P. (2011). La Pie-grièche grise Lanius excubitor en France: historique et statut récent en période de nidification. Ornithos. 18(5): 261–276. Close . In Europe, the overall breeding population has been estimated at 69,000–176,000 pairs 20 BirdLife International (2015). European Red List of Birds. Office for Official Publications of the European Communities, Luxembourg. Close . The wintering population in Poland was thought to number c. 7700 individuals in the late 1980s 21 Kuczyński, L., Rzępała, M., Goławski, A. and Tryjanowski, P. (2009). The wintering distribution of Great Grey Shrike Lanius excubitor in Poland: predictions from a large-scale historical survey. Acta Orn.. 44(2): 159–166. Close . Population of koenigi in Canary Is put at 1000–1500 pairs; several thousand pairs in Israel, and 5000–10,000 pairs (aucheri) in United Arab Emirates, with perhaps as many as c. 26,000 individuals on Socotra (uncinatus) 17 Porter, R. F., and A. S. Suleiman (2013). The populations and distribution of the breeding birds of the Socotra archipelago, Yemen: 1. Sandgrouse to buntings. Sandgrouse 35(1):43–81. Close . Fairly common in E & SE of range, but no information concerning numbers. Generally decreasing trends reported in Europe, e.g. those in Belgium and France decreased by up to 75% since the mid 1990s, mainly (but not exclusively) in response to agricultural intensification 10 Lefranc, N. and Paul, J.-P. (2011). La Pie-grièche grise Lanius excubitor en France: historique et statut récent en période de nidification. Ornithos. 18(5): 261–276. Close . Protected in most countries; in some listed as “highly endangered”, in more countries regarded as “vulnerable” or “endangered”. Situation in Asia not well known, but available data suggest that this is a declining species. Reduction in the practice of intensive agricultural management would probably be the most effective conservation measure for this shrike.