Grey-backed Shrike

The grey-backed shrike is a long-tailed shrike, 21–25 cm long and weighing 39–54 g. Juveniles are browner above than adults, with a less marked brown facial mask, a horn-coloured lower mandible and finely barred crown and upperparts. The subspecies lahulensis breeds from north Kashmir east to central India (Uttar Pradesh) and south-west China. It breeds at high elevations, to at least 4,500 m in Nepal, becoming common from about 2,700 m upwards, and nests mostly in bushes 0.7–3 m above the ground (Wikipedia, general species account).

Nesting is between June and July in India and later in Xizang, with a delay in nesting time as the elevation rises. Migrants arrive back on the breeding territories by early May. The call is rough and breathing-like, and the subdued breeding song mimics other birds for several minutes. On the non-breeding grounds in valleys and plains it is found in a variety of habitats, including gardens and abandoned cultivation. SoIB 2023 rates it a Low conservation priority, a winter migrant and localised summer migrant of open habitat with a Moderate range and an inconclusive long-term trend (Wikipedia, general species account; SoIB 2023).