Why is a Butcher Bird Named So?
There is a butcher among birds too. What does it do to have gained this nickname? Birds are perhaps the most fascinating of all fauna to be found on Earth. Take a look at these characteristics of some birds: the magpie is a singer, the kingfisher a diver, the rooster an early riser, the vulture a scavenger, the peacock a dancer, the sparrow a hopper, the crow a tool user, the eagle a glider and the owl a silent flier. But what is the shrike? Do stabbings and hanging the dead give you a clue?
Who is the butcher bird?
The shrike is a butcher bird. Butcher birds, or different species of shrikes, are largely insect-eaters but the larger ones also prey on lizards, mice and other small vertebrates. They have a creepy habit of impaling their prey on the thorns or crevices of trees! If you look closely inside a bush or a tree frequented by a shrike, you might see bodies of insects, lizards, small birds or mice- depending on the size and species of shrike-hanging there with a thorn jutting out in the middle. The shrike is a territorial bird and guards its area fiercely. It generally hunts in its own territory. It sits upright on an exposed perch to search for the prey and warn other shrikes to watch out before entering its domain. Once it spots and catches an unsuspecting prey, it hammers its head with its hooked, strong beak to kill it. It also pierces the prey to attract mates! Sound sufficiently gruesome for you?
by Arefa Tehsin and Raza H Tehsin with permission from Rupa Publications.
WHY ON EARTH?
The butcher bird doesn’t do this for fun, even though the bird may look like a masked bandit with the black stripe running across its forehead and eyes.
It impales the prey either for support while it eats it or for later consumption if it is full. These birds are no bird-brains. in fact, Intelligence in birds is well-documented.
The crow, considered one of the most intelligent creatures on earth, can not only use but even make tools to obtain food!
Similarly, the Egyptian vultures known to break eggs of large birds which they can’t carry. They use pebbles to break these eggs and eat the juicy insides.
