Brown Shrike
Lanius cristatus
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Cordats)
- ClassAves (Aus)
- OrderPasseriformes
- FamilyLaniidae (Shrikes)
- GenusLanius (Typical Shrikes)
- SpeciesLanius cristatus (Brown Shrike)
The brown shrike (Lanius cristatus) is a bird in the shrike family that is found mainly in Asia. It is closely related to the red-backed shrike (L. collurio) and isabelline shrike (L. isabellinus). The genus name, Lanius, is derived from the Latin word for "butcher", and some shrikes are also known as "butcher birds" because of their feeding habits. The specific cristatus is Latin for "crested", used in a broader sense than in English. The common English name "shrike" is from Old English scríc, "shriek", referring to the shrill call. Like most other shrikes, it has a distinctive black "bandit-mask" through the eye and is found mainly in open scrub habitats, where it perches on the tops of thorny bushes in search of prey. Wikipedia →
10–20% of wildlife watchers report a Brown Shrike sighting in Eravikulam National Park, based on 14 days of visitor records from GBIF citizen-science data.
Closest Relatives at Eravikulam National Park
Long-tailed Shrike
Lanius schach
Bay-backed Shrike
Lanius vittatus
Red-whiskered Bulbul
Pycnonotus jocosus
Indian White-eye
Zosterops palpebrosus
Indian Scimitar-Babbler
Pomatorhinus horsfieldii
Jungle Myna
Acridotheres fuscus
Greenish Warbler
Phylloscopus trochiloides
Nilgiri Flowerpecker
Dicaeum concolor
Oriental Magpie-Robin
Copsychus saularis
Nilgiri Flycatcher
Eumyias albicaudatus
Square-tailed Bulbul
Hypsipetes ganeesa
Crimson-backed Sunbird
Leptocoma minima
📅 Monthly Probability
☀️ When They're Spotted
Most active during daytime hours (6am–6pm) · across all parks (global)
Global Distribution
Where this species is recorded worldwide. Restricted to human observations from 2019 onwards — the same kind of record and the same period the probabilities on this page are built from, so collar-tracking studies, camera-trap arrays and museum specimens are excluded. Around Santa Rosa that removes 5,924 GPS fixes from a handful of tagged jaguars.
where this species is recorded (GBIF density — it tracks where observers go, not how likely a sighting is) · parks where it occurs — tap a pin for the sighting probability there
Parks Where Found
Quick answers
What are the chances of seeing a Brown Shrike in Eravikulam National Park?
About 16% of wildlife watchers report a Brown Shrike sighting in Eravikulam National Park, based on 14 days of visitor records from GBIF citizen-science data.
When is the best time to see Brown Shrike in Eravikulam National Park?
December has the highest sighting rate for Brown Shrike in Eravikulam National Park in our monthly data.