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Photo: Charles J. Sharp · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source ↗
Common Fiscal
Fiskaallaksman · Lanius collaris
A familiar black-and-white shrike of open country, present all year, with a long tail and white shoulder patches forming a V down the back. It sits upright on conspicuous perches and pounces on insects, lizards and even small birds. True to its butcher-bird habits, it wedges and impales surplus prey on thorns and barbed wire.
Log your Common Fiscal sighting — free →How to identify it
Black above and white below with a white 'V' on the back and a long black tail; no black forehead band like Lesser Grey Shrike.
Listen for its call
Jumbled harsh notes mixed with soft warbling; a grating "tszk" alarm.
Where to see it in Kruger
Resident in open and disturbed country, around camps, roadsides and clearings, perching boldly on prominent lookouts.
Did you know
Its nickname is 'Jackie Hangman' because it hangs its prey on thorns and barbed wire like meat in a butcher's shop.
Often confused with
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