Lanius phoenicuroides
Silhouette: Andy Wilson · PhyloPic
In 3 days ~10%
The red-tailed shrike or Turkestan shrike (Lanius phoenicuroides) is a member of the shrike family (Laniidae). It was formerly considered conspecific with the isabelline shrike and the red-backed shrike. The plumage is a sandy colour. It has a red tail.
The red-tailed shrike breeds in south Siberia and Central Asia. This migratory medium-sized passerine eats large insects, small birds, rodents and lizards. Like other shrikes it hunts from prominent perches, and impales corpses on thorns or barbed wire as a larder. It breeds in open cultivated country, preferably with thorn bushes.
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| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tsavo West National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 2 | Awash National Park | 🇪🇹 Ethiopia | |
| 3 | Tsavo East National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 4 | Samburu National Reserve | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 5 | Mkomazi National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 6 | Lake Manyara National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 7 | Arusha National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 8 | Nairobi National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 9 | Amboseli National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 10 | Murchison Falls National Park | 🇺🇬 Uganda | |
| 11 | Serengeti National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 12 | Lake Nakuru National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 13 | Ngorongoro Conservation Area | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 14 | Masai Mara National Reserve | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 15 | Tarangire National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Red-tailed Shrike sighting in Murchison Falls National Park on a given day, based on 22 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 293rd most-seen of the 424 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, if each day is a fresh chance.
January
In that month about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Red-tailed Shrike in Murchison Falls National Park on a given day, against under 5% in February to December, the lowest months. That is one of Murchison Falls National Park's driest months, with about 15 mm of rain against 190 mm in October.
Between 7 and 10 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Red-tailed Shrike sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
10th of 15
Of the 15 parks where we can rate Red-tailed Shrike sightings, Murchison Falls National Park ranks 10th at under 5%. The best odds are in Tsavo West National Park (Kenya, about 10%), Awash National Park (Ethiopia, about 10%) and Tsavo East National Park (Kenya, about 10%).
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Red-tailed Shrike is recorded against all the birds logged in Murchison Falls National Park (22 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
