Red-backed Shrike
Lanius collurio
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Chordates)
- ClassAves (Birds)
- OrderPasseriformes (Perching Birds)
- FamilyLaniidae (Shrikes)
- GenusLanius (Typical Shrikes)
- SpeciesLanius collurio (Red-backed Shrike)
About the Red-backed Shrike
The red-backed shrike (Lanius collurio) is a carnivorous passerine bird and member of the shrike family, Laniidae. Its breeding range stretches from Western Europe east to central Russia. It is migratory and winters in the eastern areas of tropical Africa and southern Africa.
The red-backed shrike was formally described by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1758 in the tenth edition of his Systema Naturae under its current binomial name Lanius collurio. The genus name, Lanius, is derived from the Latin word for "butcher", and some shrikes are also known as "butcher birds" because of their feeding habits. The specific collurio is from Ancient Greek kollurion, a bird mentioned by Aristotle. The common English name "shrike" is from Middle English *schrike, *schryke, from Old English sċrīc, "shriek", from the same root as shriek and screech, referring to the bird's shrill cry or call.
This 16–18 cm-long (6.3–7.1 in) migratory bird eats large insects, small birds, frogs, rodents and lizards. Like other shrikes it hunts from prominent perches, and impales corpses on thorns or barbed wire as a "larder." This practice has earned it the nickname of "butcher... Wikipedia →
Closest Relatives at Plitvice Lakes National Park
Woodchat Shrike
Lanius senator
Lesser Grey Shrike
Lanius minor
Chaffinch
Fringilla coelebs
Great Tit
Parus major
Eurasian Blackbird
Turdus merula
European Robin
Erithacus rubecula
Eurasian Nuthatch
Sitta europaea
Marsh Tit
Poecile palustris
Blackcap
Sylvia atricapilla
Common Chiffchaff
Phylloscopus collybita
Song Thrush
Turdus philomelos
Grey Wagtail
Motacilla cinerea
Global Distribution
Where this species is recorded worldwide. Restricted to human observations from 2019 onwards — the same kind of record and the same period the probabilities on this page are built from, so collar-tracking studies, camera-trap arrays and museum specimens are excluded. Around Santa Rosa that removes 5,924 GPS fixes from a handful of tagged jaguars.
where this species is recorded (GBIF density — it tracks where observers go, not how likely a sighting is) · parks where it occurs — tap a pin for the sighting probability there
Parks Where Found
Quick answers
What are the chances of seeing a Red-backed Shrike in Plitvice Lakes National Park?
About 20% of wildlife watchers report a Red-backed Shrike sighting in Plitvice Lakes National Park, based on 77 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data.
When is the best time to see Red-backed Shrike in Plitvice Lakes National Park?
June has the highest sighting rate for Red-backed Shrike in Plitvice Lakes National Park in our monthly data.