258 REPORT OF NEW JERSEY STATE MUSEUM. 



pasture, his gray and black colors showing clearly in the sunlight. 

 Then he flies, and the white patches on the rapidly moving wings at 

 once catch the eye. As he nears his new perch he flies low and turns 

 sharply upwards as he comes to rest. 



The feeding habits of the Shrikes are peculiar, they being the only 

 raptorial birds among our passerine species. They not only catch 

 and kill various mice and sometimes small birds in addition to the 

 usual beetles and grasshoppers, but impale them on sharp thorns or 

 wedge them into the fork of a branch, where the}^ are said to frequently 

 leave them and return to the hunt, though they often devour them on 

 the spot. 



622e Lanius ludovicianus migrans Palmer. 

 Northern Loggerhead Shrike. 



Adults. Length, 8.50-9.50. Wing, 3.80. Above, plumbeous gray, paler on 

 the rump, some of the scapulars white ; wing and tail feathers, black ; white 

 tips to the secondaries and to all but the two middle pairs of tail feathers ; 

 under parts, white, slightly shaded with gray on the sides ; a black patch on 

 the side of the head, involving the region about the eye and ear. 



Young in first winter have wing and tail duller, not jet black, and some- 

 times show traces of dusky vermiculations on the breast. 



Rather irregular migrant, especially in the southward flight; Au- 

 gust to December. 



This bird occurs singly, as a rule, during August and September, 

 though occasional in winter (December and January). 



The following have been recorded : 



A number taken at Princeton, New Brunswick and Barnegat, Au- 

 gust, 1878; January, 1879; W. E. D. Scott. 1 



Mt. Ephraim, near Haddonfield ; October 20th, 1884. S. N. 

 Rhoads. 2 



Tappan; August 24th ? 1888. F. M. Chapman. 3 



Cape May; August, 1890 and 1891. W. Stone. 2 



Cape May Point ; May, 1892. W. Stone. 4 



Leonia; September 27th, 1S98- 5 



Ocean View; April 30th, 1901. W. L. Baily. 6 



1 Bull. Nutt. Orn. Club, IV., p. 82. 



2 Stone, Birds of E. Pa. and N. J., p. 125. 



3 Auk, 1889, p. 304. 



4 Abst. Proc. D. V. O. C., II., p. 4. 



5 Abst. Proc. Linn. Soc., N. Y., XI., p. 5. 



6 Cassinia, 1901, p. 48. 



