- Lanius tigrinus
Identification
17-19 cm. Thick blue-black bill with a black tip, grey-black legs, reddish brown back, rump and shoulders with black bars creating a tiger-like pattern. Black mask, grey crown and nape, dull brown wings and tail, white underparts. Females are duller and have a white stripe above the eye and black barring on the flanks. Young birds have dark scale-like markings and lack the grey and black on the head.
Distribution
Central and eastern China, Korea, Japan, far east Russia. It winters mainly in Malaysia and Indonesia.
Taxonomy
This is a monotypic species.
Habitat
Open woodland, forest edges and farmland with scattered trees in lowland areas.
Behaviour
The diet includes grasshoppers, crickets, beetles, bugs, butterflies and moths. Other small animals including birds and lizards are also taken. It usually hunts from a perch at the forest edge.
Both sexes build the nest on a branch in a deciduous tree. 3-6 eggs are laid, 5 being most common; they are incubated by the female for 14-16 days. The young birds fledge after about two weeks and remain close to the nest for another two weeks.
