Brown Shrike adult female

Brown Shrike Lanius cristatus was recorded seven times on the tour including two occasions on our final day of the tour at Doi Inthanon National Park. Like most other shrikes, it has a distinctive black mask and is found mainly in open scrub habitats where it perches on the tops of thorny bushes in search of prey. In this photo, the bird was perched on a dead stem of a plant in open fields. Several populations of this widespread species form distinctive subspecies which breed in temperate Asia and migrate to their winter quarters in tropical Asia. Males and females are similar the only distinctive difference being that female birds have faint vermiculations on the flanks. These vermiculations are just visible in this photo making this an adult female.

Brown Shrike has a wide range from India to Eastern Siberia, south east Asia and east to Japan. The nominate form breeds in northern Asia from Mongolia to Siberia and winters in South Asia, Myanmar and the Malay Peninsula. The race confusus described from the same region is not well marked but is said to have a wider white brow and paler upper parts and is sometimes included within the nominate population. They feed mainly on insects, especially Lepidoptera. Like other shrikes, they impale prey such as small birds and lizards on thorns. They typically look out for prey from a perch and fly down towards the ground to capture them.

Reference: Wikipedia