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 →
Closest Relatives at Wadden Sea National Park
Red-backed Shrike
Lanius collurio
Great Grey Shrike
Lanius excubitor
Isabelline Shrike
Lanius isabellinus
Lesser Grey Shrike
Lanius minor
Woodchat Shrike
Lanius senator
Carrion Crow
Corvus corone
Eurasian Blackbird
Turdus merula
European Starling
Sturnus vulgaris
Great Tit
Parus major
Chaffinch
Fringilla coelebs
Blue Tit
Cyanistes caeruleus
European Robin
Erithacus rubecula
📅 Monthly Probability
Fewer than 5 records of Brown Shrike at Wadden Sea National Park — not enough to chart months honestly.
☀️ 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