Red-headed shrike
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Red-headed Shrike ( Lanius senator ), male |
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| Linnaeus , 1758 |
The Rotkopfwürger ( lanius Senator ) is a singing bird of the genus lanius from the family of Würger (Laniidae). The range of this migratory bird, which is obligatory except for the north-west African populations, is limited to the Western Palearctic , where it occurs in four subspecies. The distribution is extensive on the Iberian Peninsula , otherwise patchy. The wintering areas are in the Sahel region south of the Sahara . The brood incidence of the red-headed shrike in Central Europe has been decreasing for about 50 years are now largely extinct.
features
In the group of medium-sized brownish, reddish-brown or schwarzrückigen strangler of Rotkopfwürger is in most cases easy to be determined Art. Only fledglings and immature individuals are very similar to those of other species, especially those of the mask Strangler and the Shrike . Identification problems also cause hybrids , which occasionally occur at least between the red-headed shrike and the red-backed shrike.
With a total length of up to 19 centimeters, of which about 8 centimeters are accounted for by the tail, the red-headed shrike is on average only slightly larger than the red-backed shrike; However, at up to 50 grams, it is 10–20 percent heavier than this and appears more compact and bulky. Colored males are largely black on the upper side and very light, almost white on the underside. The vertex and nape of the head are rust-brown, occasionally orange-brown. The shoulders are white, as are the bases of the hand wings, which creates a clear white casement window when the bird is sitting, and a fairly wide white band when it is in flight. In some birds, the white shoulder color on the back is closed in a V-shape. The rump is white, the narrow, white-edged, spatula-shaped tail black. Forehead and forehead are black; this color continues over the eyes and cheeks to the neck and forms a face mask that is strongly separated from the whitish throat. There are often smaller white inclusions above the base of the beak. The clearly toothed, strong strangler bill is black, as is the iris . The legs are gray-brown.
The sexes do not differ in size and weight, but quite clearly in color. Females are generally paler and less contrasty in color. The upper side plumage is mostly brownish, the face mask also dark brown and often fragmented. A clear white field above the base of the beak can give a good clue for sex determination up close. Occasionally a slight flocculation and undulation of the belly-side plumage can be seen; the flanks are almost always light brown.
Young birds have the brownish-gray, dark wavy and flaky upper side plumage that is typical of juvenile shrikes. The underside is brown on a light grayish faded basic cuckoo . Clear color contrasts are missing. The white shoulder feathers are to some extent already visible after the partial moult in the first autumn and then form the best distinguishing feature from young birds of other shrimp species. Young birds of the masked shrike, which also show this characteristic, are overall lighter and not brownish in color, but light gray; the white forehead, which characterizes the adult birds, is already developed in them, but is absent in young red-headed shrike.
The flight of the red headed shrike is straight and very fast.
voice
The red-headed shrike's song - a continuous chatter, trills and whistles - is very similar to that of the red-headed shrike, but a bit louder. It is often introduced by a choppy grüg sound, followed by pressed, croaking, but also more pleasant sounds (audio sample). The calls and chants of other bird species are almost always imitated, which is why the singing of the red-headed shrike can be very different depending on the type of model. The most common model species are the tawny pipit , the Orpheus warbler and corn bunting . Both sexes sing, often in a duet. The male performs the singing of exposed waiting, while singing females usually stay in cover. Overall, the acoustic presence of the species is not particularly great; Especially stranglers that appear mated in the breeding area behave very secretly.
Like all stranglers, red-headed shrike have a range of calls. Simple presence and contact call is a two-syllable, quite quiet Kwikwik . A warning and alarm call is a loud, single or, in the case of greater excitement, a row of Gäck or Tschäck (audio sample). Especially during the tour , the family stays in contact with each other with krek or krex calls (audio sample). A piercing drirrd indicates the highest level of excitement in an antagonistic situation.
distribution
The red-headed shrike is a songbird species of the southwestern Palearctic, especially the Mediterranean . Its main distribution area is on the Iberian Peninsula, where about 85 percent of the pan-European population breed.
The range of the species extends in the west from the Maghreb states in northwest Africa over southern Portugal and large parts of Spain, southern and central France to Italy. The large islands in the western Mediterranean are populated, as are some offshore islets. To the east there are numerically good breeding occurrences, especially in the coastal area of the Balkan Peninsula , on most of the Ionian and Aegean islands , as well as in western Turkey . The red-headed shrike is also breeding bird in southern Bulgaria and on the Romanian Black Sea coast , in central Anatolia , in southern Turkey, in northern Syria and in the hinterland of the eastern and south-eastern Mediterranean coast. The species breeds in not inconsiderable numbers in the Caucasus states , especially on the west and south coasts of the Caspian Sea . The eastern border of the distribution area is not exactly known; isolated breeding occurrences are in southeastern Turkmenistan . The most relevant breeding areas to the east, however, are in the Zagros Mountains and in the Kuhrud .
The red-headed shrike was always very rare in central and northern Europe and has largely disappeared from this area today. A few pairs breed in Germany, Poland, Slovakia and Switzerland. In the Red List of Germany's breeding birds from 2015, the species is listed in Category 1 as critically endangered
The non-breeding season distribution is in the Sahel zone and in the dry savanna belt of Africa south of the Sahara. Some birds from the easternmost breeding areas overwinter in the southwest of the Arabian Peninsula , especially in Yemen .
hikes
With the exception of the north-west African red headed shrike, all other populations are obligatory long-distance migrants. The wintering areas of the subspecies are clearly separated from each other. The nominated form Lanius senator senator winters in the western part of the winter area eastwards to about the upper reaches of the Nile . The wintering areas of L. senator badius are in a relatively small area on the Gulf of Guinea , especially in southern Nigeria , those of L. senator niloticus east of the Nile in Somalia , Eritrea and northern Abyssinia .
The first red-headed shrike leave the breeding area as early as the end of July, and the main point of departure is in August. The breeding areas are largely cleared in mid-September. The birds migrate in a broad front in southwestern directions at night. The Mediterranean and the Sahara are overflown; some birds already overwinter in oases in the Sahara. The first birds arrive in the winter quarters in mid-September, the main arrival time is in October. In some cases, the home move begins in February and starts fully in March. Many red-headed shrike are probably loop pullers and retreat to the breeding area on routes to the east. The breeding areas are occupied in mid-April at the earliest, but the main arrival time is in May; only individual birds of L. s. niloticus appear in the breeding area as early as March.
habitat
Optimal habitats of the species are Mediterranean grasslands that are interspersed with rows of bushes or single trees, and offer a wide range of beetles , grasshoppers and cicadas . It populates strongly loosened maquis , light scrub forests, hedges accompanying the path, open, light oak stands and occasionally the edge zones of pine and juniper stands . The red-headed shrike is also found in areas that are used extensively as pastureland, in olive groves and vineyards, and in Morocco often in argan stands . On the Hermon , on the slopes of the Southern gray shrike , the red-backed shrike and the Masked Shrike sympatric occur with the Rotkopfwürger which Rotkopfwürger was found in similar habitats such as the red-backed shrike, there preferred the drier, more open areas. In the east of the distribution area, very dry, semi-desert-like habitats are also populated, which are only sparsely overgrown with pistachio bushes , pomegranate trees and Christ thorn bushes. In Central Europe, the species occurred or occurs in old, heat-favored orchards and orchards, less often in avenues of poplar and linden trees.
In winter quarters, the red-headed shrike colonizes light tree and thorn bush savannahs, but also appears in cultivated land and in areas in larger clearings of the rainforest.
Red-headed shrike are primarily breeding birds of the planar and colline altitudes. In Switzerland, the highest nest find was at over 1200 meters in the canton of Valais . There where red-headed shrike and red-backed shrike appear sympatric, red-backed shrike often colonize the higher areas, or areas with higher and denser undergrowth.
The settlement density and the space requirements of the red-headed shrike are difficult to determine because the species, like other shrike, tends to group-like concentrations. Within these clusters , however, own territories are claimed, which include the nest location, some residences and an open hunting area. There can be a suitable but unused area between the individual groups. With favorable conditions, the territories can be quite small, less than 3 hectares.
Food and subsistence
In contrast to most other Lanius species, the red-headed shrike feeds almost exclusively on larger insects. Other invertebrates and vertebrates are only consumed occasionally and in mostly insignificant quantities. Large beetles , grasshoppers, cicadas and crickets are the main components of the diet. Among the beetles, those species are also captured that protect themselves from predators by secreting secretions and are avoided by less specialized insect hunters. In addition, ants , butterflies and butterfly caterpillars , hymenoptera and Schnabelkerfe are often eaten. When there is a great shortage of insects, red headed shrike also eat snails , annelids , millipedes and spiders . Vertebrates such as mice , small songbirds , lizards or frogs belong to the prey spectrum of the species, but are only captured when the opportunity is particularly favorable or when the main prey is scarce. As an exception, the red headed shrike eats plant-based food, such as mulberries and fruits of various Prunus species . Occasionally, kleptoparasitism has been observed.
The red head shrike is primarily a hide hunter . He sits on a control room, usually only a few meters high, such as a bush, a fence post or a wire, and hits the prey it spies on the ground. Almost two thirds of all successful hunts are done with this method. Red-headed shrike also hunt on foot, especially for ants and other insects that occur in large numbers, and for flying insects like flycatchers in the air. Smaller prey animals are swallowed immediately and whole, while larger ones are held in place with one foot and eaten piece by piece. The red-headed shrike unstings bees, wasps and other insects equipped with a stinger before it eats them. Since insects are the main prey animals, the red-headed shrike is rarely found on the spit; Larger prey, especially vertebrates, are also skewered by the red-headed shrike for storage.
behavior
Red-headed shrike are diurnal. Your period of activity begins just before sunrise and ends at sunset. However, the train routes are covered at night. During the pre-breeding season, red-headed shrike often sit in an upright position on exposed areas of their territory, later they behave much more secretly and are also acoustically quite inconspicuous. Overall, they spend more time in the cover of bushes and trees than other stranglers. The species is territorial throughout the year and briefly forms territories even during the migration period at rest stations. Within the territories, the red-headed shrike does not tolerate any other conspecifics apart from its partner and attacks them directly if threatening gestures and threatening shouts are unsuccessful. He tries to drive songbirds with a similar food spectrum such as wheatear and other shrike species out of the territory. The red-headed shrike tolerates other species, especially the Orpheus warbler. Red-headed shrike and orpheus warbler often nest in the immediate vicinity, so that there is occasionally talk of a mutualistic relationship between these two species, as it could also exist between the Isabel shrike and the barnacle warbler . The benefit that the red-headed shrike and the Orpheus warbler derive from this proximity could lie in the defense against enemies, in that the Orpheus warbler warns of enemies within the breeding wood, while the red-headed shrike protects the area.
The red-headed shrike is only slightly shy of humans and allows approaches to less than 20 meters before it is blown.
Breeding biology
Courtship, nest building and nest
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Red-headed shrike become sexually mature at the end of the first year of life; they have a monogamous seasonal partnership. Reparations from last year's partners were occasionally observed. Most of the red-headed shrike appear already paired in the breeding area and often start building their nests immediately after arrival. Sometimes, however, unmated males also appear, usually a few days before the females in the breeding area. Conspicuous courtship elements are the low, slow territorial flight and the upright imposing pose of the male, in which the body plumage is tight, but the head and neck plumage are bristled. When the female accepts prey offered by the male and follows him inside a potential nesting wood, the partnership is sealed.
The tree or bush species most frequently present in the breeding area is chosen as the nest location; Preferences are not recognizable. In the south of France the cedar juniper was the most common nest bearer among the bushes , the holm oak and the downy oak among the trees . In the east of the distribution area the pistachio is the most common nesting wood, in Central Europe it is mainly fruit trees, especially pear trees , because of their early foliage. The nests are erected by both partners in very good coverage on side branches on average about three meters above the ground. Occasionally they are almost close to the ground, in rare cases also at great heights of 15-20 meters.
The nest is a compact, hemispherical bowl made up mainly of various plant stems. Often felt herbs and other white and gray felted plants are used as nest material. The red-headed shrike does not build woody branches. The nest hollow is laid out with fine materials such as sheep's wool, feathers or inflorescences of small woolly composites. The nest diameter is 110–140 millimeters, that of the nest cavity 70–80 millimeters.
Clutch and brood
The clutch consists of 5–6 (3–9) eggs, which are very variable in shape and color. The background is mostly cream-colored; often a greenish or pinkish tinge is noticeable. At the blunt end there are dark spots of varying density; occasionally the entire blunt end is dark. Reliefs occur regularly; Second clutches are only known from the populations in North Africa and the Levant . The average dimensions are 23 × 17 millimeters. The clutch is only incubated by the female. Occasionally it sits in the nest after the first egg, but it does not start to brood firmly until after the third and fourth egg. The young therefore hatch at the same time around 18 days after the first egg has been deposited. During the breeding season, the female leaves the nest about every 45 minutes to look for food. It is also regularly fed by the male during this time.
The boys hatch naked. They are fought by the female until about the ninth day; at this point they are already quite well feathered. In the beginning, the male alone procures the food, later the female also takes part in the foraging. The first young birds leave the nest after 15 days at the earliest, but at this point they are not yet fully fledged. They are fed by their parents for at least three weeks before they begin to hunt for prey themselves. The family association remains in place until they move away, and occasionally the train is started together.
Breeding success and life expectancy
A large study in Baden-Württemberg showed a hatching rate of 69%; of these, around 54% reached the age of ringing at 9 days, of which 44% actually flew out. This results in an average offspring rate of 2.7 boys per couple. Isenmann and Fradet calculated an even lower departure rate of 36.5%. The breeding success varies considerably from year to year; The decisive factor is the weather during the breeding season. Persistently cold and rainy weather causes many red-headed shrike to break off the brood and to move away early.
Little data is available on life expectancy. As with almost all bird species, the death rate is greatest in the first year of life; the oldest ringbirds were about six years old.
Systematics
The red-headed shrike is one of at least 26 species of the genus Lanius . Their representatives are widespread in Africa, Europe and Asia. In North America only two species occur, in South America and Australia no species of this genus breed. Various authors put the red-headed shrike in the closest relationship of black-backed African species of the genus Lanius . However, according to a molecular genetic investigation of the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and the cell nucleus DNA of the six western Palearctic and two other species of the genus, the red-headed shrike is most closely related to the black- headed shrike . Mixed breeds have become known between red-backed shrike and red-headed shrike; in most cases the red-headed shrike was the female partner.
Currently three to four subspecies of the red headed shrike are recognized, which differ mainly in the distribution of the white components in the wing field and on the tail as well as in the wing length and body size:
- Lanius senator senator Linnaeus , 1758: The nominate form breeds in the western part of the distribution area eastward to western Turkey. It is described above.
- L. s. Rutilans Temminck , 1840: This subspecies does not differ from the nominate form in appearance, but has shorter wing lengths. It occurs in southern Spain and northern Africa. Some authors consider them a variety of L. s. Senator . Many individuals of this subspecies are resident birds.
- L. s. Badius Hartlaub , 1854: The island race of the Balearic Islands , Corsica , Sardinia and Capraias differs significantly from the nominate form. It shows little white at the base of the tail, the black forehead stripe is very narrow and the white field at the bases of the hand wings is small and often hidden in the seated bird.
- L. s. Niloticus ( Bonaparte , 1853): This largest subspecies inhabits the easternmost breeding areas from the Levant eastwards to Iran and Turkmenistan. With her, the tail is white up to the middle, the outer flags of the control feathers are wider and more clearly drawn white than with the nominate form. The white wing field is also larger and more conspicuous; this breed often shows white inclusions in the forehead area. The crown and neck area are not red, but maroon.
Stock situation
The IUCN does not list the red-headed shrike in any least concern category . The total population is estimated to be around 2 million breeding pairs, 65% of which breed in Europe. In Europe itself, Spain is home to most of the breeding pairs. There is no numerical data on the non-European occurrences, but the red-headed shrike seems to be a widespread and not uncommon breeding bird in the eastern parts of its range.
The development of the population of European breeding birds shows a different picture. The stocks in the core zones on the Iberian Peninsula and in southern France decreased significantly between 1970 and 1990, while in the rest of southern and south-eastern Europe they remained largely stable or even increased. Protective measures have meanwhile largely brought the decline in south-western Europe to a standstill. In Central Europe, most of the occurrences were extinct during this period, such as those in Rhineland-Palatinate and Baden-Württemberg that were still good at the beginning of the 1960s with several 100 breeding pairs . The reasons for this catastrophic collapse of the Central European breeding occurrences lay less in the frequent wet and cold summers in this period than in the extensive conversion of old orchards into low-stem cultures and in intensified insect control. The direct tracking of the species in many Mediterranean countries as well as habitat changes in the wintering areas continue to minimize populations. Natural population-regulating factors are Eleanor's falcon and slate falcon , for which migrating red-headed shrike are preferred prey animals. Clutches and young birds are often prey to corvids and snakes.
literature
- Hans-Günther Bauer and Peter Berthold : The breeding birds of Central Europe. Existence and endangerment. Aula, Wiesbaden 1997, ISBN 3-89104-613-8 , pp. 439f.
- Javier Gonzales, Michael Wink, Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey and Guillermo Delgado Castro: Evidence from DNA nucleotide sequences and ISSR profiles indicates paraphyly in subspecies of the Southern Gray Shrike (Lanius meridionalis). In: J. Ornithol. (2008) 149, pp. 495-506.
- Urs N. Glutz von Blotzheim (ed.): Handbook of the birds of Central Europe. Edited by Kurt M. Bauer and Urs N. Glutz von Blotzheim, among others. Aula-Verlag, Wiesbaden 1985 ff. (2nd edition). Partial volume 13/2, ISBN 3-89104-535-2 , pp. 1328-1365.
- Tony Harris, Kim Franklin: Shrikes & Bush-Shrikes . Helm identification Guides, London 2000, pp. 180-184; Plate 8, ISBN 0-7136-3861-3 .
- Paul Isenmann and Guillaume Fradet: Is the nesting association between the Orphean Warbler (Sylvia hortensis) and the Woochat Shrike (Lanius senator) an anti-predator oriented mutualism? In: Journal für Ornithologie 136, 1995, pp. 288-291.
- Paul Isenmann and Guillaume Fradet: Nest site, laying period, and breeding success of the Woodchat Shrike (Lanius senator) in Mediterranean France. In: Journal für Ornithologie 139, 1998: S 49-54
- Evgenij N. Panow: The stranglers of the Palearctic . Die Neue Brehm-Bücherei Volume 557. Westarp-Wissenschaften, Magdeburg 1996, ISBN 3-89432-495-3 , pp. 171-182.
- Michael Schaub: Hunting behavior and time budget of red headed shrike Lanius senator in north-western Switzerland. In: Journal für Ornithologie 137, 1996, pp. 213-227.
Web links
- Very good information on age and gender determination. (PDF; 2.2 MB) by Javier Blasco-Zumeta and Gerd-Michael Heinze (English)
- Videos, photos and sound recordings of Lanius senator in the Internet Bird Collection
- Red-headed shrike feathers
Individual evidence
- ↑ Harris (2000) p. 181.
- ↑ 5140. (MP3) vogelwarte.ch, accessed on October 13, 2019 .
- ↑ HBV Volume 13/2 (1993) p. 1352.
- ↑ Call2. (WAV) birdsongs.it, accessed October 13, 2019 .
- ↑ Call1. (WAV) birdsongs.it, accessed October 13, 2019 .
- ↑ Panow (1996) p. 172.
- ↑ Christoph Grüneberg, Hans-Günther Bauer, Heiko Haupt, Ommo Hüppop, Torsten Ryslavy, Peter Südbeck: Red List of Germany's Breeding Birds , 5 version . In: German Council for Bird Protection (Ed.): Reports on Bird Protection . tape 52 , November 30, 2015.
- ↑ Panow 1996, p. 173.
- ↑ Harris (2000) p. 182.
- ↑ Panow (1996) p. 174.
- ↑ Csaba Moskát & Tibor István Fuisz: Habitat segregation among the woodchat shrike, Lanius senator, the red-backed shrike, Lanius collurio, and the masked shrike, Lanius nubicus, in NE Greece . Folia Zoologica 51 (2), 2002, pp. 103-11.
- ↑ HBV Volume 13/2 (1993) p. 1353.
- ↑ HBV Volume 13/2 (1993) p. 1353.
- ↑ HBV Volume 13/2 (1993) p. 1353.
- ↑ HBV Volume 13/2 (1993) p. 1354.
- ↑ Panow (1996) p. 180.
- ↑ HBV Volume 13/2 (1993) p. 1363.
- ↑ Harris (2000) p. 183.
- ↑ Schaub (1996) p. 215.
- ↑ Insenman & Fradet (1995) p. 286.
- ↑ Insenmann & Fradet (1998) p. 49f.
- ↑ Panow (1996) p. 177.
- ↑ HBV Volume 13/2 (1993) p. 1355.
- ↑ Panow (1996) p. 177.
- ↑ Harris (2000) p. 183.
- ↑ HBV Volume 13/2 (1993) p. 1350.
- ↑ HBV Volume 13/2 (1993) p. 1358.
- ↑ Isenmann & Fradet (1998) p. 52.
- ↑ HBV Volume 13/2 (1993) p. 1359.
- ↑ Panow (1996) p. 172.
- ↑ Gonzales et al. (2008)
- ↑ Harris (2000) p. 181.
- ^ Carl von Linné: Systema Naturae per Regna Tria Naturae, Secundum Classes, Ordines, Genera, Species, Cum Characteribus, Differentiis, Synonymis, Locis . 10th edition. tape 1 . Imprensis Direct Laurentii Salvii, Stockholm 1758, p. 94 ( biodiversitylibrary.org ).
- ^ Coenraad Jacob Temminck: Manuel d'ornithologie, ou, Tableau systématique des oiseaux qui se trouvent en Europe; précédé d'une analyze du système général d'ornithologie, et suivi d'une table alphabétique des espèces, et d'une table corrélative de matières contenues dans les quatres partie de cet ouvrage; . 2nd Edition. tape 4 . H. Cousin, Ve Legras, Paris, Amsterdam 1840, p. 601 ( biodiversitylibrary.org ).
- ↑ Gustav Hartlaub: Attempt at a synoptic ornithology of West Africa . In: Journal of Ornithology . tape 2 , no. 8 , 1854, p. 97-128 ( biodiversitylibrary.org ).
- ^ Charles Lucien Jules Laurent Bonaparte: Monograph de Laniens . In: Revue et magasin de zoologie pure et appliquée (= 2 ). tape 5 , 1853, pp. 433-441 ( biodiversitylibrary.org ).
- ↑ Lanius senator in the Red List of Endangered Species of the IUCN 2017. Posted by: BirdLife International. Retrieved February 24, 2019.
- ↑ Panow (1996) p. 172.
- ↑ data sheet Birdlife Europe; engl.
- ↑ Bauer & Berthold (1997) pp. 439-440.
- ↑ HBV Volume 13/2 (1993) p. 1350.
