Brown-backed shrike who first met in winter

Photography: Zhuang m

Brown-backed shrike is a kind of bird with gorgeous feathers, beautiful figure, prominent and widely distributed, and its number is relatively rare compared with large groups of birds such as white-cheeked blackbird, big tit and red-headed long-tailed tit.

But seeing him, his dark lips are not particularly thick, but they are by no means thin. The sharp upper lip bends downward, covering and exceeding the lower lip. Long black eye lines extend obliquely from the top of the lips to the back of the ear and then to the shoulders; Eyes as bright as black gems are set in the middle of this dark eye pattern, shining; Above the eye lines, the whole head is decorated with beautiful blue-gray color, like a waterfall of hair weaving hanging straight down on the back; Gorgeous brown-red connecting blue-gray from the lower back to the shoulder, two waists, two sides and tail roots smudge up and down, as if cutting a brilliant summer sunset on the back; Wings shining with black metallic luster cover both sides of the sunset glow, but what can cover the glow of the rosy clouds? It oozes from under the feather of each wing, giving the feather end of the wing the same gorgeous color. Therefore, the feather end of the wing has a layered rhythmic beauty, one layer of black and one layer of brownish red, plus a trace of pure white outside the wing, which makes his whole back to the sky more dazzling; There is a slender reddish-brown tail feather in light black, which sets off his delicate and slender body.

His color facing the earth is equally beautiful. The brownish red on the waist, sides and tail roots gradually faded upward to the abdomen, from rich brownish red to light brownish red, and finally to the center, chest and throat of the abdomen, becoming as white as snow.

This beautiful feather color can only be given to the male, and the female is much inferior. In the world of birds, all the brightly colored and euphemistic singers are males. There is no way, this is a characteristic given to them by God, and no one can change it. In order to breed, some females must choose the best mate.

The female shrike with brown back has a grayish blue head, which is dull and dull. Her back is reddish brown, and the feather tips of her wings are not as beautiful as reddish brown and light black. However, the outer edge of her light black wings is dotted with a few white spots, which makes her look much more beautiful and makes up for many shortcomings. Males never comb and shake their feathers, while females may be as naturally fond of beauty as females in the human world? She always shakes her whole body to make her feathers fluffy, then buries her head, combs her abdomen and chest like a comb with a curved sharp mouth, and then turns to comb her back. She is as silly and lovely as a woman who spends money but has no obvious beauty effect.

Brown-backed shrike is a lonely bird. But he is widely and evenly distributed, and has his beautiful figure in the vast countryside, parks in cities and Woods in residential quarters. Moreover, they never appear in the same place at the same time, just like tigers, lions and leopards in the "animal world" all have their own spheres of influence.

In the Woods, he always perches on a low branch, staring around, and often pounces, or pounces on the ground, or jumps directly forward. Soon, he returned to the branch. There must be a grasshopper, mantis, locust, beetle or other insects in his mouth at this time. He never fought a battle without victory. They are carnivorous birds and never eat plant food such as grass seeds, seeds, flowers and vegetables.

In the vast countryside, he always stands on a high tightrope gracefully, proudly and alone. There is only one in the distance, but there will always be one. I wonder what he was thinking when he looked down at the thicker and greener rape seedlings and wheat seedlings in the warm spring breeze and warm sunshine. Perhaps, they think that spring has come, and this is their season of joy and love. It's time for him to take action and practice his voice.

So, that day, I finally heard the high-pitched, rough, slightly harsh, but tactfully beautiful song of Brown-backed Shrike, who had been silent for a whole winter.