Red-backed Shrike

Lanius collurio

Order: Passeriformes
Family: Laniidae
Presence in the Strait: Vagrant
Protection in Spain: Special protection (List)
In Spanish: Alcaudón dorsirrojo

Photograph: SteveM4560, CC BY, vía iNaturalist

Length: 17 cm
Weight: 30 g

Presence in the Strait

Accidental. Three records of single birds: at Valle del Santuario (Tarifa) on 23.09.76, at the River Hozgarganta (Jimena) on 14.10.76 and at Gibraltar on 9.10.89.

Identification

Males are distinctive: reddish-brown on back and broad black eye-stripe. Females have duller backs and lack grey head; ill-defined eye-stripe and vermiculated underparts. Juveniles are like females but heavily vermiculated above. They breed in S of Scandinavia to the N of the Iberian Peninsula, migrating through Eastern Europe. Alcaudón Común Alcaudón Real Meridional Laniidae Alcaudón Común ad. juv. Alcaudón Real Alcaudón Dorsirrojo

Bioestrecho editorial text. Last revised: 8 September 2026.

Photographs from iNaturalist observations with the licence checked file by file. Those marked “Strait” were taken within the area; place and date are those of each observation.

Calendar in the Strait

67 %

Peak in September. Observations under CC0 or CC BY licences. The distribution also reflects observation effort.

Where it is seen

Open records from the atlas database, in cells of about 3.6 km. Opacity follows the square root of the count, and also reflects where people observe most.

See on the map

First open record: 1 September 1959
Latest record: 15 September 1997

The oldest and the most recent open observation in the extended area. A recent first observation does not mean the species is new: it means nobody had published it openly before.

Conservation

The catalogues, Andalusian and Spanish, are what binds; the Red Book assesses the Spanish population with IUCN criteria, and the global Red List is the context.

LCNTVUENCR

Andalusian Catalogue: Not included
Spanish Catalogue: Special protection (List)
Red Book of the Birds of Spain 2021: VU · Vulnerable · breeding
Global Red List (IUCN): LC · Least concern

Andalusian Catalogue: Junta de Andalucía, list of 24 April 2025. Spanish Catalogue: MITECO, table of 30 June 2025. Red Book: SEO/BirdLife, 2021 (Annex I). IUCN: via GBIF, 6 September 2026. Red Book and IUCN categories are assessments; catalogue categories are legal obligations.

Same genus in the Strait

Woodchat Shrike19–19 cm · Seasonal
Southern Grey Shrike24–24 cm · Seasonal

Species of the same genus that also occur here, ordered by how close they are in size. Being relatives does not mean they are confused in the field, but that is where the doubts start: compare size and season.

Classification

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Passeriformes
Family: Laniidae
GBIF taxon key: 7745240

Sources

Distribution and calendar: Bioestrecho's own database, ingested from GBIF and OBIS
Photograph: SteveM4560, CC BY, vía iNaturalist
Taxonomy: GBIF backbone, pending WoRMS for marine taxa
Editorial text: written by Bioestrecho
Last revised: 8 September 2026

Red-backed Shrike

Presence in the Strait

Identification

Gallery