Woodchat shrike

    Lanius senator

Castilian: Alcaudón común

Catalan: Capsigrany

Gallego: Picanzo cabecirrubio

Euskera: Antzandobi kaskagorria

CLASIFICACIÓN:

Orden: Passeriformes

Family: Laniidae

Migratory status: Summer resident

CONSERVATION STATUS:

On the National List of Threatened Species, it appears in the “Of Special Interest” category. In the 2004 edition of the Red Book of Spanish Birds (Libro Rojo de las Aves de España) it is listed as “Near Threatened”.

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THREATS

Pastureland has been covered by shrubland following the abandonment of extensive livestock farming; also, agricultural modernisation has decreased the species' food supply with the excessive use of pesticides. Drought and hunting in its wintering areas in Africa are also threats.

Length / size: 18 cm / 26-28 cm

Identification: It has a large, reddish head. Its facial disc, back and wings are black with large white spots on its primaries; likewise, its tail is black with white edges. This contrasts with the white on its breast and underparts. The female's colours are softer and greyish.

Song: It makes rough clicks as an alarm call, "chart-chart-chart".

Diet: It feeds especially on beetles and other arthropods, reptiles and small mammals. It impales some of its prey on thorny bushes.

Reproduction: The breeding period begins in April; it is possible for pairs to arrive from wintering areas. The cup-shaped nest is made by both parents in thick bushes using thin branches, hair and feathers. Incubation is done by the female whie the male is in charge of food. The chicks are fed by both parents.

HABITAT

It occupies flat, thinly-forested areas where there is scrubland, pastureland and farmland. It prefers more wooded areas in comparison with other shrikes, which is why it is not common in deforested areas.

DISTRIBUTION

In Spain: It is distributed throughout the entire peninsula but is rare in northern areas such as Galicia, the Cantabrian Mountains, and the Pyrenees Mountains.

In Castile and León: It is not a common species, but it is distributed throughout all the provinces. The highest densities are found in Salamanca, Segovia and Zamora, and it is practically absent in northern León.

Movements and migrations: It is a summer nesting species in the Iberian Peninsula. It arrives in March and leaves the area in summer, after breeding season, crossing the Sahara toward the African savannahs. In passage, it can be found in less wooded areas at low altitudes. There is also a present of some European specimens.

POPULATION

In Spain: There is an estimated population of 390000-860000 breeding pairs.

In Castile and León: There is an estimated population of less than 5500 breeding pairs.