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Shrikes
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Length: 7 inches
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Heavy, hooked bill
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Black mask
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Gray head and back
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White underparts
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Black wings with white wing patches
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Black tail with white outer tail feathers
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Juveniles and immatures are duller with faint barring
above and below
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The loggerhead shrike is a masked, hook-billed songbird known for
its habit of impaling prey on thorns or barbed wire. It is a gray,
black and white bird, with a slim tail, large head, hooked black beak
and distinctive black mask. When a shrike flies, you can see two white
wing patches. Males and females are similar in size and color. Because
of its size, color and wing patches, the loggerhead shrike is easily
confused with mockingbirds and more common northern shrikes. Mockingbirds,
however, have longer tails, larger wing patches and no mask. Northern
shrikes are slightly larger than loggerheads and have a barred breast,
paler head, whiter rump and longer bill. Unlike the loggerhead's entirely
black bill, the northern shrike's bill has a light-colored lower mandible. |
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| Bird rescue & bird adoption;
parrot refuge/rescue & placement for unwanted birds. |
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| Check out our list of local
birds broken down by your state and different types of
species. |
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| Migrating birds stay on track
because of chemical reactions in their bodies that are
influenced by the Earth's magnetic field... |
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Part
I
November
19, 2004