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2018-05-09
Samarkand region. |
© Bakhtiyor Mardonov
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The Lesser Grey Shrike is medium-sized bird with specific bill with hooked tip. On adult males the crown, mantle and uppertail are grey; the eye-mask is black and broad. The wings are black with quite large white speculum formed by the white bases of only primaries; the secondaries have narrow white terminal edges. The two central pairs of the tail feathers are black; the third and fourth pairs are black with white bases and tips; the fifth pair is white with dark shaft and spot on the inner web; other tail feathers are white with dark shafts. The throat, breast, flanks and undertail are white grayish-pink tinged especially intensive on the breast and flanks; underwings are off-white. The females are paler; the grey upperparts and the black on head, wings and tail have brownish tone; the pink tinge on flanks and breast are pale too. The bill and legs are black, eyes are brown. On juveniles in first plumage the crown and mantle are dirty-grey with scaly pattern forming by the brown narrow pre-terminal edges of the feathers. The mask starts not from forehead but from mouth-sides and faintly expresses on the lores. The flight feathers and wing coverts are with whitish-buddy terminal edges; the throat, breast and abdomen are off-white. In the end of summer this plumage is changed by the first autumn one when the juveniles increase to the adults' size. In this plumage the mottled upperparts feathers are changed onto plain brownish-grey ones. On this intermediate plumage the juveniles migrate to wintering. Sizes: males – wing 111-121, tail 91-111, females - wing 111-121, tail 94-103 mm. Weight 42,3-55,0 grams.
"Птицы Казахстана" том 3. "Наука". Алма-Ата, 1970.
