138 THE BIRDS OF NEW JERSEY. 



Shrike, Ijo^^erhcad. — Length, nine inches; extent, 

 thirteen inches; bill, one-third of an inch, black; head and 

 back, gray; breast, soiled white, sometimes with slight 

 waves of dark gray; belly and throat, white; tail, black, 

 white tips, the four middle feathers being wholly black. 

 The female is darker. 



The nest is found in hedges or low trees. The eggs are 

 from three to five in number, of a dirty white, with 

 brown spots, one by three-fourths of an inch in size. It 

 breeds and is distributed through the southern United 

 States as far northward as Virginia and a few are seen in 

 summer in Cape May County, N. J. ^ Stragglers are occa- 

 sionally taken in fall and winter at various points in the 

 state. Its song is a succession of gurgles and whistles, is 

 very unmusical and harsh, but it makes up in quantity 

 what it lacks in quality. The food of these birds consists 

 of grasshoppers, small snakes and lizards. 



Shrike, ,^'orthern, or Butcher Bird. — Length, ten 

 inches; extent, thirteen inches; bill, half an inch, hooked 

 and strong; head, dark gray, witli a black bar on each 

 side from behind the eye; back, gray; breast and sides, 

 light gray, with waves of darker gray; belly, white, with 

 scarcely any wavy bars; tail, black, tipped with white, 

 center pair of feathers entirely black; wings, black with 

 white tips and a large white bar across the inner webs of 

 the feathers; legs and feet, bluish black. The female is 

 brighter gray above. 



The birds nest in low trees or bushes, the nests being 

 made of sticks with a superstructure of grass, tendrils, 

 wool, etc. The eggs are from three to five in number, of 

 a soiled white, with brown spots, and one inch by three- 

 fourths in size. 



They breed from the northern border of the L'nited 

 States northward and in winter go south as far as the Po- 

 tomac valley. At times they are rare in New Jersey, but 

 in ver}^ severe seasons they are plentiful. 



