The butcher bird
The Great grey shrike is a predator it kills other animals and eat them for its survival. even its babies feed on fresh killed animals. hence, a shrike has to kill for its own sake and for the sake of raring of its younger ones. they usually kill large insects, lizards, rodents and small birds. since the shrike is a small bird, it cannot hold a prey and tear it off in pieces for eating. Therefor, it hooks the freshly killed prey on a thorn or spine of a branch of a tree or other slim and spiky projected object. the great grey shrike is found in the United Arab Emirates. actually, it is the largest of shrikes found in the middle eastern region and almost all over the country wherever there is a vegetation. it is also found on almost all islands in the the United Arab Emirates.
This Shrike has a very wide distribution ranging from Siberia to the north and eastern edge of Sahara extending over Europe, Asia and Africa. it occurs in several biological forms called subspecies . The subspecies found in the United Arab Emirates ( lanius excubator aucheri ) not only occur in Arabia but also in Pakistan, Iraq, and Iran to Eritrea , Somalia , Sinai Peninsula and Palestine. it is resident in certain parts of its range and migratory in others. In the United Arab Emirates, both resident and migratory population are found.
Great Grey shrike is mostly found in public parks, large gardens , farming areas, hilly terrain and in and in human habitations in far flung areas like Liwa Oasis. it is often seen at the Creek Side Park and other parks in Dubai ( commercial city of u.a.e) , Abu dhabi, Al Ain , Ras Al Khaimah and so on. Basically a bird of the open country and forest edges. the birds measures about twenty five centimeters and weighs between fifty five eighty grams. Grey shrikes body resembles a miniature version of a little falcon. it is slim and elongated with a fairly long tail. large head , a quite powerful and hooked bill and powerful claws. Overall, the bird looks grey (ohh! yeah it has the word" Grey " in its name ) white and black. it perches on prominent place from where it can look for unsuspected prey species and waits for an opportune moment to swoop on them.
Shrike usually live in pairs, through the tradition is broken when several specimens come together in one area during winter and the migratory population joins the resident one. a pair of birds is very territorial and parochial. The same pair can be found in the same area day after day. Only when it is disturbed or vegetation is removed and there is a scarcity of food does the pair disappear. shrike is quite raucous. Often it produces a loud and harsh creek creek sound at mid day it imitates the calls of other birds in its environment. it is a very bold and courageous bird. it even challenges quite large birds such as crows and kites if they try to pass by its territory. And it is very defensive of its young ones.
In the United Arab Emirates, the bird breeds during Winter and Spring. The nest is always hidden amongst a thorny tree at a height of between two or four meters. the nest is a cup of dry twigs lined with fine grass blades and feathers of other birds. nests material might also include pieces of wool; thread polythene ropes or pieces of ply bags. it takes seven to ten days to build a nest and both partners take part in nest building, incubation and baby caring. a female female lays five to seven eggs in a clutch. it can also lay a repeat clutch.
Both parents attend to the eggs and the young ones. the eggs are whitish or greenish with large dark brownish blotches. their egg measures about two point six centimeters in length. and about one point nine centimeters in breadth. it takes 15 days to hatch a clutch of eggs and the chicks are born blind and helpless. they are cared by the parents for almost weeks. The chicks gets food from the parents for up to two months, and they reach maturity by the end of a year.
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