Since the start of the week reports had been coming in of a Lesser Grey Shrike that had taken up temporary residence in some horse paddocks behind Halfway cottages at Leiston in Suffolk so today I made my way over to try and see this bird that is very rarely seen in this country. The Lesser Grey Shrike is normally found in south east Europe and migrates to Africa in the winter because it prefers warmer climates.
Arriving in the general area the bird had been seen I could see a collection of 5 or 6 people looking out into the paddocks and I very quickly spotted the bird hunting insects on the ground and then hopping up onto a perch to consume them. The shrike seemed to be doing a circuit of the paddocks and luckily for me came quite close to perch on a fence post where I took a few pictures, then it swooped down into the grass, caught an insect and flew back to the post allowing me to obtain a couple of flight shots.
The bird was a juvenile which would help to explain why it was so far away from its normal migrating route, the adult has a more pinkish breast and a much larger and more prominent black mask on its head. A super bird to look at and as far as I know the first to be seen in the area for 6 or 7 years so I count myself fortunate to have seen one.
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