21-4-2025 POTRIES, VALENCIA - WOODCHAT SHRIKE (Lanius senator)

The Woodchat Shrike, Lanius senator, is a captivating bird, slightly larger than its cousin, the Red-backed Shrike. The male boasts a distinctive appearance with black and white upper parts and a rich chestnut crown, while the female and juveniles display a more subdued brown and white vermiculated plumage with buff underparts.

To identify the Woodchat Shrike, look for the male's striking black and white upper parts and chestnut crown. The female and young birds are less conspicuous with their vermiculated brown and white upper parts and buff underparts. The western Mediterranean race, L. s. badius, lacks the prominent white wing patches seen in other subspecies.

This species has a preference for open wooded areas with scattered trees, such as orchards, especially where the ground is bare or sandy. 

The Woodchat Shrike breeds across southern Europe, the Middle East, and northwest Africa, and migrates to winter in tropical Africa. Its range spans from Portugal to Greece and from Mauritania to Libya, with occasional sightings as far north as Great Britain.

The Woodchat Shrike is known for its perching behaviour, often seen on exposed lookouts from where it swoops down or glides to capture its prey. It is also known to occasionally impale its prey on thorns, a behaviour typical of shrikes.

Breeding occurs from early May to mid-July. Both sexes contribute to nest building, which is typically situated in a tree. The clutch consists of 5-6 eggs, incubated mainly by the female, with fledglings cared for by both parents.

The diet of the Woodchat Shrike is primarily insectivorous, with beetles being a favoured choice. It employs a sit-and-wait hunting strategy from elevated perches and is known to dismember larger insects.

The Woodchat Shrike is currently classified as Near Threatened due to long-term population declines attributed to habitat loss, pesticide use, climate change, hunting during migration, and other factors. Despite this, it has a large estimated population of 5.9-10 million individuals.

22-12-2023 PIRANG PONDS, GAMBIA - WOODCHAT SHRIKE (Lanius senator)

The woodchat shrike (Lanius senator) is a member of the shrike family Laniidae. It can be identified by its red-brown crown and nape. It is mainly insectivorous and favours open wooded areas with scattered trees such as orchards, particularly when there is bare or sandy ground. The woodchat shrike breeds in southern Europe, the Middle East and northwest Africa, and winters in tropical Africa.

The breeding range of the woodchat shrike is in southern Europe, northern Africa and the Middle East. The range extends from Portugal to Greece, Turkey, Iraq and Iran, and in the Arabian Peninsula including Bahrain and Kuwait, and from Mauritania and Western Sahara in northern Africa to Libya. This bird overwinters in tropical central Africa, its winter range extending from Senegal to Sudan and Ethiopia in the east and southwards to Gabon. This species often overshoots its breeding range on spring migration, and is a rare, but annual, visitor to Great Britain. The Balearic race badius has occurred in Britain around four times as a vagrant, and has also been recorded once in Ireland.

19-4-2023 LA YESA, VALENCIA - WOODCHAT SHRIKE (Lanius senator)

 

https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/12039-Lanius-senator

Very distinctive black-masked shrike with a red crown and nape. Stocky and big-headed, with prominent white wing patches. Juveniles are pale gray and scaly. Found in open areas with scattered bushes and trees, especially old orchards, where they sit on prominent perches; uses acacia savanna on non-breeding grounds. Song is a long jumble of various vocal elements, including warbles, whistles, rasping calls, and mimicry. Gives long series of harsh, dry calls.

29-3-2023 MONTERO, CORDOBA - WOODCHAT SHRIKE (Lanius senator)

https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/12039-Lanius-senator

8-6-2022 SANT FILIP NERI, ALICANTE - WOODCHAT SHRIKE (Lanius senator)

https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/12039-Lanius-senator

5-6-2022 POBLA DEL DUC, VALENCIA - WOODCHAT SHRIKE (Lanius senator),

20-8-2021 MARTIAGO, SALAMANCA - WOODCHAT SHRIKE (Lanius senator)

https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/12039-Lanius-senator

24-7-2021 GANDIA, VALENCIA - WOODCHAT SHRIKE (Lanius senator)

https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/12039-Lanius-senator

 

9-5-2021 MONTAVERNER, VALENCIA - WOODCHAT SHRIKE (Lanius senator)

https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/12039-Lanius-senator 

28-4-2021 RACO DE OLLA, VALENCIA - WOODCHAT SHRIKE (Lanius senator)

https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/12039-Lanius-senator

 

12-4-2021 GANDIA MARJAL, VALENCIA - WOODCHAT SHRIKE (Lanius senator)

https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/12039-Lanius-senator

 

27-7-2020 BARQUEROS, MURCIA - WOODCHAT SHRIKE (Lanius senator)

https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/12039-Lanius-senator

3-5-2018 PEGO MARJAL, ALICANTE - WOODCHAT SHRIKE (Lanius senator)

16-7-2017 PEGO MARJAL, ALICANTE - WOODCHAT SHRIKE (Lanius senator)

The woodchat shrike (Lanius senator ) is a member of the shrike family Laniidae. It can be identified by its red-brown crown and nape. It is mainly insectivorous and favours open wooded areas with scattered trees such as orchards, particularly when there is bare or sandy ground. The woodchat shrike breeds in southern Europe, the Middle East and northwest Africa, and winters in tropical Africa.

The woodchat shrike is 17–19 cm (6.7–7.5 in) in overall length which is slightly larger than a red-backed shrike. The male is a striking bird with black and white upper parts, a chestnut crown and pure white underparts. The race L. s. badius of the western Mediterranean lacks the large white wing patches. In the female and young birds, the upperparts are brown and white and vermiculated. Underparts are buff and also vermiculated.

The breeding range of the woodchat shrike is in southern Europe, northern Africa and the Middle East. The range extends from Portugal to Greece, Turkey, Iraq and Iran, and in the Arabian Peninsula including Bahrain and Kuwait, and from Mauritania and Western Sahara in northern Africa to Libya. This bird overwinters in tropical central Africa, its winter range extending from Senegal to Sudan and Ethiopia in the east and southwards to Gabon. This species often overshoots its breeding range on spring migration, and is a rare, but annual, visitor to Great Britain. The Balearic race badius has occurred in Britain around four times as a vagrant, and has also been recorded once in Ireland.

The woodchat shrike mainly eats insects, particularly beetles, but its diet can include other invertebrates and very occasionally small mammals and small birds. It hunts by perching on an exposed lookout such as on a branch of a tree or on a fence, typically 2–6 m (7–20 ft) above the ground, and then dropping or gliding down to its prey. It also makes sallying flights after flying insects. Small insects are crushed in its bill but large insects are dismembered. Impaling prey on a thorn has been recorded but is unusual. Indigestible material such as chitin, bones and hair is regurgitated as pellets.

Eggs are laid from early May to mid-July. The nest is built by both sexes and is placed in a tree, usually a fruit or olive tree. The nest is a strong cup of plant material which is lined with wool, hair, fine roots, cobwebs and lichen. The nest sometimes includes green plant material. The clutch is usually 5–6 eggs which are laid daily. The eggs are glossy and vary in colour: they can be pale olive-green, sandy, greyish-yellow or brown. They have brown to pale olive speckles concentrated at the broader end. For the nominate subspecies the average size is 23 mm × 17 mm (0.91 in × 0.67 in) with a calculated weight of 3.4 g (0.12 oz). After the last egg is laid they are incubated by the female; only very rarely does the male participate. The eggs hatch after 14–15 days. The young are cared for by both parents and fledge after 15–20 days. The parents continue to feed the fledgelings up to 3 to 4 weeks of age.

The longest lived woodchat shrike recorded by ring-recovery data is 5 years and eight months for a bird found dead in Germany.

18-8-2016 ADOR CAMPO, VALENCIA - WOODCHAT SHRIKE (Lanius senator)

The woodchat shrike is 17–19 cm (6.7–7.5 in) in overall length which is slightly larger than a red-backed shrike. The male is a striking bird with black and white upper parts, a chestnut crown and pure white underparts. The race L. s. badius of the western Mediterranean lacks the large white wing patches. In the female and young birds, the upperparts are brown and white and vermiculated. Underparts are buff and also vermiculated.

The breeding range of the woodchat shrike is in southern Europe, northern Africa and the Middle East. The range extends from Portugal to Greece, Turkey, Iraq and Iran, and in the Arabian Peninsula including Bahrain and Kuwait, and from Mauritania and Western Sahara in northern Africa to Libya. This bird overwinters in tropical central Africa, its winter range extending from Senegal to Sudan and Ethiopia in the east and southwards to Gabon. This species often overshoots its breeding range on spring migration, and is a rare, but annual, visitor to Great Britain. The Balearic race badius has occurred in Britain around four times as a vagrant, and has also been recorded once in Ireland.

The woodchat shrike mainly eats insects, particularly beetles, but its diet can include other invertebrates and very occasionally small mammals and small birds. It hunts by perching on an exposed lookout such as on a branch of a tree or on a fence, typically 2–6 m (7–20 ft) above the ground, and then dropping or gliding down to its prey. It also makes sallying flights after flying insects. Small insects are crushed in its bill but large insects are dismembered. Impaling prey on a thorn has been recorded but is unusual. Indigestible material such as chitin, bones and hair is regurgitated as pellets.

The longest lived woodchat shrike recorded by ring-recovery data is 5 years and eight months for a bird found dead in Germany.

Eggs are laid from early May to mid-July. The nest is built by both sexes and is placed in a tree, usually a fruit or olive tree. The nest is a strong cup of plant material which is lined with wool, hair, fine roots, cobwebs and lichen. The nest sometimes includes green plant material. The clutch is usually 5–6 eggs which are laid daily. The eggs are glossy and vary in colour: they can be pale olive-green, sandy, greyish-yellow or brown. They have brown to pale olive speckles concentrated at the broader end. For the nominate subspecies the average size is 23 mm × 17 mm (0.91 in × 0.67 in) with a calculated weight of 3.4 g (0.12 oz). After the last egg is laid they are incubated by the female; only very rarely does the male participate. The eggs hatch after 14–15 days. The young are cared for by both parents and fledge after 15–20 days. The parents continue to feed the fledgelings up to 3 to 4 weeks of age.

14-8-2016 ADOR CAMPO, VALENCIA - WOODCHAT SHRIKE (Lanius senator)

The woodchat shrike (Lanius senator ) is a member of the shrike family Laniidae. It can be identified by its red-brown crown and nape. It is mainly insectivorous and favours open wooded areas with scattered trees such as orchards, particularly when there is bare or sandy ground. The woodchat shrike breeds in southern Europe, the Middle East and northwest Africa, and winters in tropical Africa.

The woodchat shrike is 17–19 cm (6.7–7.5 in) in overall length which is slightly larger than a red-backed shrike. The male is a striking bird with black and white upper parts, a chestnut crown and pure white underparts. The race L. s. badius of the western Mediterranean lacks the large white wing patches. In the female and young birds, the upperparts are brown and white and vermiculated. Underparts are buff and also vermiculated.

The breeding range of the woodchat shrike is in southern Europe, northern Africa and the Middle East. The range extends from Portugal to Greece, Turkey, Iraq and Iran, and in the Arabian Peninsula including Bahrain and Kuwait, and from Mauritania and Western Sahara in northern Africa to Libya. This bird overwinters in tropical central Africa, its winter range extending from Senegal to Sudan and Ethiopia in the east and southwards to Gabon. This species often overshoots its breeding range on spring migration, and is a rare, but annual, visitor to Great Britain. The Balearic race badius has occurred in Britain around four times as a vagrant, and has also been recorded once in Ireland.

The woodchat shrike mainly eats insects, particularly beetles, but its diet can include other invertebrates and very occasionally small mammals and small birds. It hunts by perching on an exposed lookout such as on a branch of a tree or on a fence, typically 2–6 m (7–20 ft) above the ground, and then dropping or gliding down to its prey. It also makes sallying flights after flying insects. Small insects are crushed in its bill but large insects are dismembered. Impaling prey on a thorn has been recorded but is unusual. Indigestible material such as chitin, bones and hair is regurgitated as pellets.

Eggs are laid from early May to mid-July. The nest is built by both sexes and is placed in a tree, usually a fruit or olive tree. The nest is a strong cup of plant material which is lined with wool, hair, fine roots, cobwebs and lichen. The nest sometimes includes green plant material. The clutch is usually 5–6 eggs which are laid daily. The eggs are glossy and vary in colour: they can be pale olive-green, sandy, greyish-yellow or brown. They have brown to pale olive speckles concentrated at the broader end. For the nominate subspecies the average size is 23 mm × 17 mm (0.91 in × 0.67 in) with a calculated weight of 3.4 g (0.12 oz). After the last egg is laid they are incubated by the female; only very rarely does the male participate. The eggs hatch after 14–15 days. The young are cared for by both parents and fledge after 15–20 days. The parents continue to feed the fledgelings up to 3 to 4 weeks of age.

The longest lived woodchat shrike recorded by ring-recovery data is 5 years and eight months for a bird found dead in Germany.

12-4-2016 CAMPO, OLIVA - WOODCHAT SHRIKE (Lanius senator)

The woodchat shrike (Lanius senator ) is a member of the shrike family Laniidae. It can be identified by its red-brown crown and nape. It is mainly insectivorous and favours open wooded areas with scattered trees such as orchards, particularly when there is bare or sandy ground. The woodchat shrike breeds in southern Europe, the Middle East and northwest Africa, and winters in tropical Africa.

The woodchat shrike is 17–19 cm (6.7–7.5 in) in overall length which is slightly larger than a red-backed shrike. The male is a striking bird with black and white upper parts, a chestnut crown and pure white underparts. The race L. s. badius of the western Mediterranean lacks the large white wing patches. In the female and young birds, the upperparts are brown and white and vermiculated. Underparts are buff and also vermiculated.

The breeding range of the woodchat shrike is in southern Europe, northern Africa and the Middle East. The range extends from Portugal to Greece, Turkey, Iraq and Iran, and in the Arabian Peninsula including Bahrain and Kuwait, and from Mauritania and Western Sahara in northern Africa to Libya. This bird overwinters in tropical central Africa, its winter range extending from Senegal to Sudan and Ethiopia in the east and southwards to Gabon. This species often overshoots its breeding range on spring migration, and is a rare, but annual, visitor to Great Britain. The Balearic race badius has occurred in Britain around four times as a vagrant, and has also been recorded once in Ireland.

The woodchat shrike mainly eats insects, particularly beetles, but its diet can include other invertebrates and very occasionally small mammals and small birds. It hunts by perching on an exposed lookout such as on a branch of a tree or on a fence, typically 2–6 m (7–20 ft) above the ground, and then dropping or gliding down to its prey. It also makes sallying flights after flying insects. Small insects are crushed in its bill but large insects are dismembered. Impaling prey on a thorn has been recorded but is unusual. Indigestible material such as chitin, bones and hair is regurgitated as pellets.

Eggs are laid from early May to mid-July. The nest is built by both sexes and is placed in a tree, usually a fruit or olive tree. The nest is a strong cup of plant material which is lined with wool, hair, fine roots, cobwebs and lichen. The nest sometimes includes green plant material. The clutch is usually 5–6 eggs which are laid daily. The eggs are glossy and vary in colour: they can be pale olive-green, sandy, greyish-yellow or brown. They have brown to pale olive speckles concentrated at the broader end. For the nominate subspecies the average size is 23 mm × 17 mm (0.91 in × 0.67 in) with a calculated weight of 3.4 g (0.12 oz). After the last egg is laid they are incubated by the female; only very rarely does the male participate. The eggs hatch after 14–15 days. The young are cared for by both parents and fledge after 15–20 days. The parents continue to feed the fledgelings up to 3 to 4 weeks of age.

The longest lived woodchat shrike recorded by ring-recovery data is 5 years and eight months for a bird found dead in Germany.

11-4-2016 DENIA MOUNTAIN, ALICANTE - WOODCHAT SHRIKE (Lanius senator)

https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/12039-Lanius-senator

The woodchat shrike (Lanius senator) is a member of the shrike family Laniidae. It can be identified by its red-brown crown and nape. It is mainly insectivorous and favours open wooded areas with scattered trees such as orchards, particularly when there is bare or sandy ground. The woodchat shrike breeds in southern Europe, the Middle East and northwest Africa, and winters in tropical Africa.