Southern Fiscal
Lanius collaris
The Southern Fiscal (Lanius collaris) is a common shrik found in 20 countries, weighing about 36 g. The southern fiscal or fiscal shrike is a member of the shrike family found through most of southern Africa.
About the Southern Fiscal
The southern fiscal or fiscal shrike is a member of the shrike family found through most of southern Africa. It is also sometimes named jackie hangman or butcher bird due to its habit of impaling its prey on acacia thorns to store the food for later consumption. It was previously lumped together with the northern fiscal. Together they were known as the common fiscal.
Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
How to identify it
This is a fairly distinctive 21–23-cm long passerine with white underparts and black upperparts extending from the top of the head down to the tail. The bird has a characteristic white "V" on the back and a relatively long black tail with white outer feathers and white tips on the other feathers. The bill, eyes and legs are black. Adult male and female common fiscals are quite similar except for the rufous lower flank of the female. The calls are a jumbled mix of shrike-like swizzling sounds including some imitations and a harsh Dzzzttt-dzzzt-dzzzt alarm call.
Where it lives
When to see it
The Southern Fiscal can be seen all year round, with peak activity in December. It is a resident species across most of its range.
Easily confused with
Quick questions
- How do you identify a Southern Fiscal?
- This is a fairly distinctive 21–23-cm long passerine with white underparts and black upperparts extending from the top of the head down to the tail. Full identification notes are on this page.
- How big is a Southern Fiscal?
- The Southern Fiscal is a small sized bird weighing about 36 g.
- Where can you see a Southern Fiscal?
- The Southern Fiscal occurs in 20 countries, including South Africa, Namibia, Eswatini, Zimbabwe and Lesotho.
- What birds look similar to a Southern Fiscal?
- The Southern Fiscal is most easily confused with the Long-tailed Shrike, the Brown Shrike and the Northern Shrike.
Learn the Southern Fiscal for real
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