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 Horton Plains National Park, based on 75 days of visitor records from GBIF citizen-science data.
Closest Relatives at Horton Plains National Park
Sri Lanka White-eye
Zosterops ceylonensis
Pied Bushchat
Saxicola caprata
Yellow-eared Bulbul
Pycnonotus penicillatus
Hill Swallow
Hirundo domicola
Dull-blue Flycatcher
Eumyias sordidus
Large-billed Crow
Corvus macrorhynchos
Cinereous Tit
Parus cinereus
Oriental Pipit
Anthus rufulus
Indian Blackbird
Turdus simillimus
Zitting Cisticola
Cisticola juncidis
Sri Lanka Bush-Warbler
Elaphrornis palliseri
Grey Wagtail
Motacilla cinerea
📅 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 Horton Plains National Park?
About 17% of wildlife watchers report a Brown Shrike sighting in Horton Plains National Park, based on 75 days of visitor records from GBIF citizen-science data.
When is the best time to see Brown Shrike in Horton Plains National Park?
May has the highest sighting rate for Brown Shrike in Horton Plains National Park in our monthly data.