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Northern Shrike

Lanius excubitor ORDER: PASSERIFORMES FAMILY: LANIIDAE

IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern

Northern Shrike Photo

© 2004 Cornell Lab of Ornithology

A predatory songbird, the Northern Shrike breeds in taiga and tundra and winters in southern Canada and the northern United States. It feeds on small birds, mammals, and insects, sometimes impaling them on spines or barbed wire fences.

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Calls

  • Song, call
    Recorded by Brian J. McCaffery
    • Courtesy of Macaulay Library
    © Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

Song is a complex and variable sequence of harsh notes, chatter, trills, and whistles. Calls include a rapid rasping "aak-aak" and a sharp metallic "beek."

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Search the Macaulay Library online archive for more sounds and videos