Overview
The lesser grey shrike (Lanius minor) is a passerine bird in the shrike family Laniidae. It breeds in South and Central Europe and western Asia and migrates to winter quarters in southern Africa in the early autumn, returning in spring. It is a scarce vagrant to western Europe, including Great Britain, usually as a spring or autumn erratic.
It is similar in appearance to the great grey shrike (Lanius excubitor) and the Iberian grey shrike (Lanius meridionalis); both sexes are predominantly black, white and grey, and males have pink-flushed underparts.
Summary from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Range and habitat
Breeds Iberian Peninsula to Siberia and central Asia; winters to southern Africa.
Range description: AviList Global Avian Checklist.
Countries
- Afghanistan
- Albania
- Andorra
- Angola
- Armenia
- Austria
- Azerbaijan
- Bahrain
- Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Botswana
- Bulgaria
- Chad
- China
- Croatia
- Cyprus
- Denmark
- Djibouti
- DR Congo
- Egypt
- Eritrea
- Eswatini
- Ethiopia
- Gabon
- Georgia
- Germany
- Greece
- Hungary
- Iran
- Iraq
- Ireland
- Israel
- Italy
- Jordan
- Kazakhstan
- Kenya
- Kosovo
- Kyrgyzstan
- Latvia
- Lebanon
- Libya
- Malawi
- Mali
- Moldova
- Montenegro
- Mozambique
- Namibia
- North Macedonia
- Oman
- Palestine
- Poland
- Republic of the Congo
- Romania
- Russia
- Rwanda
- Sao Tome and Principe
- Saudi Arabia
- Serbia
- Slovakia
- Slovenia
- Somalia
- South Africa
- Spain
- Sudan
- Sweden
- Syria
- Tajikistan
- Tanzania
- Turkey
- Turkmenistan
- Uganda
- Ukraine
- United Arab Emirates
- Uzbekistan
- Vatican City
- Yemen
- Zambia
- Zimbabwe
Sources and further reading
- Wikipedia: Lesser grey shrike
- eBird: sightings, maps and photos
- xeno-canto: sound recordings
- Birds of the World: full species account (subscription)
- BirdLife DataZone: status and threats
- IUCN Red List (threat status)
- AviList global checklist (taxonomy)
Last updated September 29, 2026.