Woodchat Shrike \ Lanius senator

The Woodchat Shrike (Lanius senator), is a striking medium-sized shrike of open Mediterranean landscapes. Adult males are easy to recognize by their black-and-white body pattern, white shoulder patch, rich chestnut crown, black mask, and clean white underparts. Females and juveniles are duller, with brown, buff, and white vermiculated markings. Like other shrikes, it often hunts from an exposed perch, watching for large insects, small lizards, and other small prey before dropping down quickly to catch them.

In the Levant, including Lebanon, the Woodchat Shrike is strongly associated with scrub, open country, scattered trees, bushes, orchards, and open woodland edges. In Lebanon, it is listed as a fairly common migrant breeder and common migrant, breeding from late March to mid-July in many montane areas with sparse vegetation or open woodland, from the coast up to about 1,800 m, and passing through mainly from early March to late May and again from early August to late September. Main threats include habitat loss, degradation, illegal hunting, climate change, disturbance, and pesticides.