Grey-headed Bush-Shrike ( Malaconotus blanchoti, family: Malaconotidae)

grey headed bush shrike kruger national park birds The Grey-headed Bush-Shrike (Latin name Malaconotus blanchoti) is described in Roberts Birds of Southern Africa, 7th Edition. This bird has a unique Roberts number of 751 and you will find a full description of this bird on page 706 also a picture of the Grey-headed Bush-Shrike on page 721. The Grey-headed Bush-Shrike belongs to the family of birds classified as Malaconotidae.

The map of the Kruger you see on this page shows the areas (coloured orange) where this bird has been identified. The basic information was provided by the Avian Demographic Unit based at UCT and I created the maps from that information ... the green dots show the locations of the various Kruger National Park Rest Camps

The Grey-headed Bush-Shrike is neither Endemic or near Endemic to the Kruger National Park. It is however a common resident

In terms of distribution of the Grey-headed Bush-Shrike in the Kruger National Park you may not see it in all areas. Grey-headed Bush-Shrike : see above distribution map.

The Grey-headed Bush-Shrike.

Identification assistance for this avian species ...

The Grey-headed Bush-Shrike is a bird about the same size as a starling. The height of the Grey-headed Bush-Shrike is about 26 cms and its weight is about 77 gms

The male and female Grey-headed Bush-Shrike have the same plumage and colours

  • Head is grey.
  • Eye is chestnut.
  • Bill is black.
  • Throat is white, grey.
  • Back is grey.
  • Legs are black.

This bird has normally proportioned leg length.

Main diet items for this bird ...

The Grey-headed Bush-Shrike feeds on the ground mainly

Invertebrates

Breeding and nesting habits for this bird ...

The Grey-headed Bush-Shrike is monogamous unless its mate dies. In the event of a partner dying Malaconotus blanchoti will seek out a new mate

The nesting habit of Grey-headed Bush-Shrike is to create the nest in branches of a tree or shrub. The bird lays eggs which are green in colour and number between 2 to 3

Habitat and flocking behaviour for this bird ...

The preferred habitats for Grey-headed Bush-Shrike are: woodlands and grasslands

You will not see Grey-headed Bush-Shrike in flocks. The bird prefers to act singly or in pairs.

Names of this avian species in other languages ...

Xhosa ... Umbhankro

Zulu ... uHlaza

Afrikaans ...Spookvol

German ... Graukopfwrger, Riesenbuschwrger

Portuguese ... Picano-de-cabea-cinzenta

French ... Gladiateur de Blanchot

Dutch ... Spookklauwier

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For in-depth birding information please refer to these authoritative avian references ...

Robert's 7th edition number ... 751

The main reference source for this data was "Roberts - Birds of Southern Africa, 7th Edition" . Other references were "Newmans Birds of the Kruger Park" by Keith Newman published circa 1980 . Names in foreign languages were obtained from the Percy Fitzpatrick Institute of African Ornithology, University of Cape Town website , www.fitzpatrick.uct.ac.za