Photo Study Of A Northern Shrike On The Graber Farmstead In Lehigh County 

I was able to get back to see the Northern Shrike again today and both the bird and sunshine were a little kinder to this old picture taker. Today's photos are shown below the ones I took last week.

A Northern Shrike (Lanius excubitor)  was found on January 3rd by Kirk and Lois Moulton of North Wales during the Christmas Bird Count on a farm near the village of Krausdale, PA. I was able to photograph it today albeit from a vantage point about 150 feet away from the bird. The quality of the photos is only so-so because we tried to stay back so as not to harass the bird.

It seems to have plenty of food (lots of sparrows, woodpeckers and bluebirds adjacent to a soybean field full of mice and voles), water, cover and a perfect habitat of mixed hard woods, cedars and shrubs surrounding a  small frozen pond.  Cold weather will not bother this northern species so hopefully it will hang around until the hormones drive it back home for the breeding season.

Northern Shrike
 
Northern Shrike

Northern Shrike Photographed January 14th, 2010

The other North American Shrike is the Loggerhead Shrike (Lanius ludovicianus) of the American South and Southwest. I am showing its photos below for comparison:

  
Loggerhead Shrike At Mitchell Lake Audubon Center In San Antonio, Texas

I would like to thank Donald Moyer and his family for permitting both birders and picture takers to walk their property to observe the Shrike.

Please click on either the thumbnails or the captions to see a larger image...thanks!

Please click on either the thumbnails or the captions below to see a larger image of the photos taken January 14th, 2010...thanks!

Revised January 14th, 2010

© Howard B. Eskin 2010                                                           Please click here to email suggestions or comments to hbeskin@voicenet.com                                           Please click here to go back to Bird Webpage Index