Bird Bio: Loggerhead Shrike
Over the past weekend, I decided that it was past time I get out on the open road and do a little birding. I had the whole day off, the sun was shining, and the air was crisp and cool. I just had a gut feeling that I would get something interesting if I went out and made an effort.
I chose to focus my efforts on an area of relatively undeveloped farm land to the south of Franklin and Leiper’s Fork. The bird I hoped to find in this area was the Loggerhead Shrike. While these fascinating birds are in fact members of the songbird family, their feeding habits are more akin to raptors and birds of prey. They often scan for prey from elevated perches or whilst hovering, and once their target is spotted, things get interesting. For larger prey that cannot be eaten whole, they will actually impale their unlucky meal on sharp objects such as barbed wire fencing, honey locust and blackberry thorns, or any other sharp protrusions they can find. This may sound barbaric to us, but this is simply an effective method of food storage for when food is scarce (such as the depths of winter) or when energy demands are high. (While raising young.) During the warmer months of spring, summer, and fall, they will most commonly prey on invertebrates such as spiders, grasshoppers, and butterflies. During colder weather, when insects are scarce, their diet becomes more vertebrate based including mice and other songbirds. They have even been observed killing and feeding on frogs, lizards, snakes, turtles, voles, and ground squirrels.
Example of a Loggerhead Shrike Caching Food for Later
Photo Credit: Eli Haislip
Loggerhead Shrikes can be found from southern Mexico to southern Canada, typically frequenting open country, farmland, and scrub. On one interesting occasion however, while on a trip to Fort Walton Beach in Florida, I was making my way along the boardwalk through the dunes when I actually spotted a loggerhead shrike perched atop a tall plant not 25 feet away. I was happy to at least have my binoculars handy, but I was kicking myself for not bringing my camera and telephoto lens. In Middle Tennessee, the best bet for finding these birds is to search for them in relatively open farmland. Something to note however, and another reason to bring your binoculars, is this type of habitat is also frequented by our state’s bird, the Northern Mockingbird. I have been deceived on more than one occasion when I catch a flash of grey on a rural fence row only to realize on closer inspection that it is a mockingbird. The shrike is a relatively bulbous looking bird with a large head for its body size (hence the name, loggerhead) whereas the mockingbird is usually more slender in appearance. Be warned though, that a mockingbird with its feathers puffed out can look quite chunky and can lead to a false ID. This is why carrying binoculars is so important. Shrikes also have a distinctive black mask that gives them a slightly Machiavellian appearance.
Loggerhead Shrikes often nest relatively close to the ground, usually between 2 and 4 feet. Both male and female will gather nesting materials, but the female builds the nest. Clutch size is 2-6 eggs, and they will nest once or twice a year. Incubation ranges from 15-17 days and the nesting phase lasts 16-20 days. After this, the young fledglings will mimic adult behavior by impaling inanimate objects, practicing acrobatic chase maneuvers, and practice for when they begin hunting by carrying sticks or twigs in their beaks to simulate prey.
With all this in mind, you can now understand why I was hoping for a chance to observe one of these unique birds. I did not choose my area entirely on impulse. Several years ago, I had observed a shrike here and with them living at least 11 years, I just had a feeling I would see one. I made several slow passes up and down Gray Ln. in Williamson County, but with no shrikes. I did see two Northern Mockingbirds, and several American Kestrels, but my quarry continued to elude me. I was beginning to lose hope, and the thought of lunch was becoming too tempting to ignore. After one final pass, I decided I would get something to eat and pass back this way later in the afternoon. Turning right off of Gray Ln. and onto Bear Creek Rd., I hadn't driven a hundred yards when to my left, perched on the middle rung of a wood fence, was a Loggerhead Shrike! A quick check to make sure the coast was clear and I did a U-turn and pulled up alongside where I could observe the bird for a moment. A look through binoculars also reveals the sharp hook on the end of their beak that they will use to sever the spine of their prey. After allowing me time for several photos, the bird finally took off and flew to a tall tree further out in the field. I must admit, my lunch tasted just a little bit better after finally spotting the bird that I had set out that morning in search of.
Loggerhead Shrike on Bear Creek Rd. Williamson County
Photo Credit: Eli Haislip
The Sale Table is Back!
As we begin to catch our breath while the after Christmas dust settles, we have some items that are on sale while supplies last that we’d like to tell you about. ALL REMAINING Cobane glass ornaments and Mr. Bird seed ornaments are 50% off! We have more goodies on there as well, ranging from enameled bird pins to lavender sachets so check it out and get yours before it’s gone!
A Word on Black-oil Sunflower
As some of you may have noticed, the quality of some of our previous shipments of black-oil sunflower seed has not lived up to our usual standard. The reason for this is because our primary supplier of seed actually over ordered black-oil and they now find themselves with a surplus. While every year as we start to scrape the bottom of the proverbial barrel (or in this case, silo) we start to see a slight drop in quality, this year has been below the level that we are comfortable with selling. Because of this, we have switched to our secondary source of seed out of Kentucky and we are happy to announce that the seed is fresh and exceptionally clean. Instead of 25 pound bags, we currently only have 20 pound bags but the per pound price has been adjusted accordingly.