218 Birds. 



end. It is only an occasional visitor to this country, 

 where it is generally found between autumn and spring. 

 " The Shrike," says Mr. Yarrell, " feeds on mice, shrews, 

 small birds, frogs, lizards, and large insects. After having 

 killed its prey, it fixes the body in a forked branch, or 

 upon a sharp thorn, the more readily to tear off small 

 pieces from it. It is from their habit of killing and 

 hanging up their meat, that the Shrikes are called 

 Butcher-birds." The head, back, and rump are ash- 

 coloured ; the chin and lower part of the body white ; 

 the breast and throat varied with dark lines crossing each 

 other ; the tips of the feathers of the wings are, for the 

 most part, white ; it has a black spot by the eye ; the 

 outermost tail feathers of the male are all over white ; 

 the two middlemost have only their tips white, the rest 

 of the feathers being black, as well as the legs and feet. 

 It builds its nest among thorny shrubs and dwarf trees, 

 and furnishes it with moss, wool, and downy herbs, 

 where the female lays five or six eggs. A peculiarity 

 belonging to the birds of this kind is, that they do not, 

 like most other birds, expel the young ones from the 

 nest as soon as they can provide for themselves, but the 

 whole brood live together in one family. The Butcher- 

 bird will chase all the small birds upon the wing, and 

 will sometimes venture to attack partridges, and even 

 young hares. Thrushes and blackbirds are frequently 

 their prey : the Shrike fixes on them with its talons, 

 splits the skull with its bill, and feeds on them at leisure. 

 On this account Linnaeus classed the Shrikes with the 

 birds of prey ; but modern naturalists have placed them 

 with the insect-eaters, as insects are their principal food. 

 It is easy to distinguish these birds at a distance, not 

 only from their going in companies, but also from their 

 manner of flying, which is always up and down, seldom 

 in a direct line, or obliquely. 



The Little Butcher-bird (Lanius collurio'), called in York- 

 shire, Flusher, is about the size of a lark, with a large 

 head. About the nostrils and corners of the mouth it 

 has black hairs or bristles ; and round the eyes a large 

 black longitudinal spot ; the back and upper side of the 

 wings are of a rusty colour ; the head and rump cine- 



