Southern grey shrike

    Lanius meridionalis

Castilian: Alcaudón real

Catalan: Botxí meridional

Gallego: Picanzo Real meridional

Euskera: Antzandobi handia

CLASIFICACIÓN:

Orden: Passeriformes

Family: Laniidae

Migratory status: Permanent resident

CONSERVATION STATUS:

This species does not belong to any protection category.

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THREATS

Its primary threats are agricultural intensification, the abuse of pesticides, and difficulties in finding a nesting site and searching for food, due to the elimination of forest boundaries and fallow land.

Length / size: 24-25 cm / 28-34 cm

Identification: Stout bird with a large head that is crossed by a black facial disc, with a strong bill that is hooked at the tip. Its back and head are greyish, its chest white-pink, its wings black with white markings, and its long tail is also black with whitish edges. It could possibly be confused with the lesser grey shrike, but this bird is larger.

Song: it makes trills and chirps that are long and hoarse but quiet and simple: "prrrree".

Diet: It feeds on large insects like grasshoppers, crickets and beetles, and also on mice, small birds, reptiles and moles. Its hunting method is characteristic because it impales some of its prey on hawthorns, blackthorns, and other bushes that have thorns.

Reproduction: The breeding period begins in March. It builds its nest in small, thick trees using branches, grass and moss. After incubation, the chicks are fed by both parents.

HABITAT

It has no specific preferences apart from the presence of at least a minimum amount of vegetation, which is why it occupies open areas with trees and shrubs. It is not usually found above 1,500 metres.

DISTRIBUTION

In Spain: It is distributed throughout the entire peninsula but is absent in the northern part of the Cantabrian Mountains and the Pyrenees. It does not breed in the Iberian System or in some parts of the Mediterranean region.

In Castile and León: Distributed in all the provinces but in small concentrations. The highest densities are found in León, Zamora, Salamanca and Segovia; it is rarer in farming areas in the centre of the community.

Movements and migrations: It is a sedentary species, although there are some specimens that cross the Strait of Gibraltar in August and September. In the peninsula, some pairs remain together in the breeding area, while in other cases the females spread out.

POPULATION

In Spain: There is an estimated population of 200000-250000 breeding pairs.

In Castile and León: There is an estimated population of less than 7000 breeding pairs.