Vlad's StoryVlad arrived at the World Bird Sanctuary on September 9, 1997 from a Panama City Beach, Florida rehabilitation center. He joined several other shrikes of the same species at WBS as part of a breeding and behavioral studies program. Loggerhead Shrikes are endangered in Missouri, mostly due to habitat loss. Unfortunately, our program did not meet with great success, even after teaming up with another shrike researcher from Canada. Like some other animals, shrikes just do not breed well in captivity.
Having lived well past the normal life expectancy for this species, Vlad is a permanent resident of our Education building where visitors can learn about the unusual storing habit of this species.
Vlad takes his name from Prince Vlad III Dracula, or Vlad the Impaler, who, in 1290, was a prince of Walachia. However, legend suggests he was born in Transylvania, which at that time was ruled by Hungary. Can you guess how Vlad the shrike got his name? Read the natural history below to find out!
Feel free to visit Vlad anytime. We are thrilled to be able to introduce people to him and tell them the importance of a species like shrikes!
To adopt Vlad, simply click our donation button, make a donation of $50 and specify in your payment notes: Adopt-a-bird: VLAD. Also include your name, phone number, and mailing address so that we can send you your adoption materials!
Every donation helps to feed, house, and provide medical care for the bird of your choice! Adopt-A-Bird Parents Receive:
- *A personal visit with the bird you adopt!!!!! Call 636-861-3225 to set up a time for
- your personal visit.
- * Certificate of Adoption
- * Color photo of the bird you've adopted
- * Sponsorship Card
- * One year's subscription to Mews News (our quarterly newsletter)
- * Life History and Natural History of the bird
- * 10% Discount off WBS merchandise
- * Invitation to Sponsors-only events like Camera Day
- * Discounts on WBS Special Events
- * WBS Decal
Natural History
loggerhead shrike
Lanius ludovicianus
Description gray, black and white bird with an oversize head; heavy hooked bill equipped with a tomial tooth for dispatching prey; distinctive black mask; body is gray above and white below; wings are black, marked with a white patch; narrow black tail with white outer feathers
Sex: both sexes similar in appearance; female plumage somewhat darker; juveniles brownish-white beneath with breast and sides transversely barred with dark grey
Age: unknown in the wild; one study in Illinois recorded a banded bird of 6 years
Length: 8-10”
Wingspan: 13’
Weight: slightly smaller than a robin; 44-61.10 grams
Habitat: semi-open country with lookout posts, wires, trees and scrub
Status: extinct in 2 states; endangered in 11 states; threatened in 2 others; 3.5% decline per year decline nationwide; 6.3% per year decline in Missouri
Range: southern Canada to southern Mexico; migratory in the northern half of it’s range
Behavior: they nest in a thick shrub or low tree, usually between 3-15 feet above ground; nest is a bulky cup of long twigs, weed stems and rootlets, lined with plant down, bark, hair and feathers; 4-5 greenish-white eggs are laid; incubation is 14-16 days; young fledge at 14-21 days and generally become independent 15 days later; best known for it’s unique behavior of impaling prey on thorns, barbed wire and similar projections
Diet: insects, mice, small birds and other vertebrates, such as frogs and snakes
Vocalization: no song; utters a shrill, clear, creaking prolonged note, similar to the grating of a rusty hinge moved to and fro; heard only in the spring when the hen is sitting
√ It’s habit of impaling prey on thorns and barbed wire fences has earned it the common name of “Butcher Bird”
Adopt A Bird profiles are written and photographed by Gay Schroer.
Lanius ludovicianus
Description gray, black and white bird with an oversize head; heavy hooked bill equipped with a tomial tooth for dispatching prey; distinctive black mask; body is gray above and white below; wings are black, marked with a white patch; narrow black tail with white outer feathers
Sex: both sexes similar in appearance; female plumage somewhat darker; juveniles brownish-white beneath with breast and sides transversely barred with dark grey
Age: unknown in the wild; one study in Illinois recorded a banded bird of 6 years
Length: 8-10”
Wingspan: 13’
Weight: slightly smaller than a robin; 44-61.10 grams
Habitat: semi-open country with lookout posts, wires, trees and scrub
Status: extinct in 2 states; endangered in 11 states; threatened in 2 others; 3.5% decline per year decline nationwide; 6.3% per year decline in Missouri
Range: southern Canada to southern Mexico; migratory in the northern half of it’s range
Behavior: they nest in a thick shrub or low tree, usually between 3-15 feet above ground; nest is a bulky cup of long twigs, weed stems and rootlets, lined with plant down, bark, hair and feathers; 4-5 greenish-white eggs are laid; incubation is 14-16 days; young fledge at 14-21 days and generally become independent 15 days later; best known for it’s unique behavior of impaling prey on thorns, barbed wire and similar projections
Diet: insects, mice, small birds and other vertebrates, such as frogs and snakes
Vocalization: no song; utters a shrill, clear, creaking prolonged note, similar to the grating of a rusty hinge moved to and fro; heard only in the spring when the hen is sitting
√ It’s habit of impaling prey on thorns and barbed wire fences has earned it the common name of “Butcher Bird”
Adopt A Bird profiles are written and photographed by Gay Schroer.
No comments:
Post a Comment