Loggerhead Shrike Identification

The Four Keys to ID

• Size & Shape

  Loggerhead Shrikes are thick-bodied songbirds. They have large, blocky heads and a thick bill with a small hook. The tail is fairly long and rounded.

  Relative Size

  Smaller and more slender than an American Robin; larger and longer-tailed than a Western Bluebird.

  robin-sized

  Measurements

  • Both Sexes
  • • Length: 7.9-9.1 in (20-23 cm)
    • Weight: 1.2-1.8 oz (35-50 g)
    • Wingspan: 11.0-12.6 in (28-32 cm)

  © Brian Sullivan / Macaulay Library

• Color Pattern

  The Loggerhead Shrike is a gray bird with a black mask and white flashes in the black wings. The gray head contrasts with the wide, black mask, black bill, and white throat. The tail is black with white corners; the wings are black with white at the base of the primaries that form a small “handkerchief” spot when the wing is closed and larger white patches in flight. Juveniles have darker barring above and below.

• Behavior

  Loggerhead Shrikes sit on low, exposed perches and scan for rodents, lizards, birds, and insects. They eat smaller prey (such as ground beetles) right away, but they are famous for impaling larger items on thorns or barbed wire to be eaten later. The species often hovers. When flying it uses bursts of very rapid wingbeats.

• Habitat

  Open country with scattered shrubs and trees is the typical habitat of Loggerhead Shrike, but the species can also be found in more heavily wooded habitats with large openings and in very short habitats with few or no trees.

Regional Differences

Shrikes from eastern North America have pale to medium-gray rumps. Loggerhead Shrikes from the Interior West have white rumps similar to those of Northern Shrikes. Loggerhead Shrikes breeding in southern California are slightly darker above and much darker below. An endangered subspecies of Loggerhead Shrike from San Clemente Island, in southern California, is the darkest gray of all.

Regional Photos

© Bryan Calk / Macaulay LibraryTexas, January 06, 2017

© Christoph Moning / Macaulay LibraryCalifornia, March 01, 2010

© Justyn Stahl / Macaulay LibraryCalifornia, August 24, 2016