Northern Shrike | Lanius borealis | Pie-grièche boréale

            It has been a good winter for Northern Shrike in Prince Edward County. They arrived last October, and are still hanging around. Perhaps an abundance of prey items, with lots of winter finches and Meadow Vole present, is behind all the sightings.

As a songbird that hunts, kills and eats other songbirds, they are a disconcerting presence. I've witnessed five shrike attacks this winter, long exhausting tail chases of Northern Cardinal, American Tree Sparrow, Common Redpoll, and American Robin. Unlike the usually quick strikes of hawks, shrikes pursue their prey for long distances, a relentless grey spectre following every twist and turn about a metre behind their target.

Northern Shrikes nest in the Boreal Forest, and this one, still in immature plumage (traces of brown, heavy barring on the breast, indistinct face mask) will soon be heading back north. They have already begun to sing, a discordant mix of almost musical phrases and harsh chattering - suitably jarring for this atypical killer.

Despite, or maybe because of, all the tangle, I'm happy with this image. In my experience shrike are tricky to photograph, not from wariness, but from always being on the move. This one was perched beside Kings Road near The County's south shore, and for once I was able to pull up beside it. In a situation like this the first thing I do, even before the vehicle has stopped, is kill the heater/fan and open all the windows. This quickly vents warm air and cuts down on the heat haze that can mar cold weather photography. Then I start taking pictures, as many as I can, and hope that one turns out.

In this case, one did, but only with a bit of cloning in Adobe Lightroom. A vertical blurry branch tracked up from the tangle, meeting the bird where the legs join the body and crossing the wing before ending in the sky. I don't have the patience or skill for delicate processing work, so am pleased with the quick result I got.

Taken in: Canada / Ontario / Salmon Point (show map)

Taken on: March 9, 2021

Tags:

PEC

Prince Edward County

Canada

Northern Shrike

Lanius borealis

Pie-grièche boréale

Immature

Bird

Bird of Prey

Predator

Nature

Wildlife

Lightroom

Cloning

Processing

Winter

Canon EOS 90D

EF600mm f/4L IS III « less

Sets appears in: • Prince Edward County

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Camera: Canon EOS 90D, f/9.0, 1/800 sec, 600mm, ISO 500 (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	Canon EOS 90D
Lens:	EF600mm f/4L IS III USM
Aperture:	f/9.0
Exposure Time:	0.001 sec (1/800)
Focal Length:	600mm
ISO:	500
Exposure Bias:	+1/3 EV
Flash:	No Flash
Exposure Program:	Aperture-priority AE
Exposure Mode:	Auto
Metering Mode:	Multi-segment
White Balance:	Auto
Color Space:	sRGB
Software:	Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Classic 10.1.1 (Macintosh)
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