A Little Bit More
Only two kinds of shrikes live in North America (Northern and Loggerhead) and their ranges only overlap in the winter. Identification of the two is not easy and probably best made by sighting them on their summer nesting area with a field guide range map in hand. Although shrikes don’t look like a typical bird of prey, if you see one chase and catch a small bird or mouse, you’ll think differently. Of course, as the poster points out, food impaled on a thorn or barbed wire fence is a dead give-away that a shrike is nearby.
Typical shrike habitat is an open field or grassy area with scattered shrubs, trees, fences or telephone wires. Shrikes often sit quietly on a perch surveying their area and dart out to surprise an unsuspecting prey item. They kill prey with a blow from their strong bill and then eat it or store it for later use. Many large insects (grasshoppers, beetles, wasps) are taken, as well as birds as large as a Blue Jay, plus field mice, voles, and lemmings. Shrikes are not one of our more common birds, so when seen, it’s a special sighting for birdwatchers.
Activities
Science & English – Show Off!
Objectives: Creative writing exercise
Materials: Paper and pencil plus the information on our unit
The unusual habit of shrikes to impale their prey on thorns and barbed wire fences is not fully understood. Whether the shrike is saving it for a later meal, announcing its territory to other shrikes, or does it for some other reason is not clear. Since scientists are not sure why shrikes do this, why not have your students write their own short story about why they think the shrike performs this behavior. Their story can be fanciful or factual, whatever you think will best draw out their writing creativity.
Key Concepts
Adaptations and Diversity, Behavior and Regulation, Food Webs /Food Pyramids, Identification, Predator/Prey Relationships
Questions
Do you have a question for a naturalist? Go ahead and ask!
It's easy -- just fill out this form, submit your question and you'll receive an answer shortly.