Lanius senator
Lanius senator
The woodchat shrike is a circum-Mediterranean breeding species with populations in the Caucasus and the Near East (BirdLife International, 2024). In Europe it occurs in the Mediterranean peninsulas and in the southern and central parts of France (Keller et al., 2020). In Spain it is generally a very common species, although it is absent from much of the Eurosiberian region and high mountain areas. Its greatest abundances occur in the western half of the country, but it also extends through Catalonia, the Levant, and the Balearic Islands (Infante in SEO/BirdLife, 2022). It is present in Melilla and Ceuta and absent from high areas of the Pyrenees and from the Canary Islands.
In Madrid it is widely distributed, although it seems to become rarer towards the southeast. It occupies open Mediterranean woodlands, preferring holm oak forests and stone pine forests (Díaz et al., 1994).
In the national park it is barely present, as the predominant altitudes with open habitats are not suitable for this species. It has only been detected at one point near Pinilla del Valle.
This is a summer species associated with dehesa landscapes of holm oak and cork oak with low shrub cover, as well as herbaceous areas, grasslands, and Mediterranean tree crops (Hernández in Martí and Del Moral, 2003). Its highest densities occur in dehesa habitats with extensive livestock farming and surrounded by low grasslands. It also uses woody crops, agro-pastoral mosaics, vineyards, and field edges, while avoiding dense forests (Tellería et al., 1999; Garrido-Bautista, 2020).
It has been recorded in an area occupied by livestock grasslands with scattered shrubs and oaks, the typical habitat of the species.
At a global scale it is considered Near Threatened (NT; 2022). In Europe it would also be classified in the same category (NT; 2021). In Spain it is listed as Vulnerable in the 2021 Red List.
The Catalogue of Threatened Species of the Community of Madrid (1992) does not place the species in any threat category.
BirdLife International 2024. IUCN Red List for birds. https://datazone.birdlife.org.
Díaz, M., Martí, R., Gómez-Manzaneque, Á. y Sánchez, A. 1994. Atlas de las aves nidificantes en Madrid. Agencia de Medio Ambiente y SEO/BirdLife. Madrid.
Keller, V., Herrando, S., Voříšek, P., Franch, M., Kipson, M., Milanesi, P., Martí, D., Antón, M., Klvaňová, A., Kalyakin, M. V. Bauer, H. Gr y Foppen, R. P. B. 2020. European Breeding Bird Atlas 2: Distribution, Abundance and Change. European Birds Census Council y Lynx Edicions. Barcelona.
Garrido-Bautista, J. 2020. Alcaudón común–Lanius senator. En López, P., Martín, J. y Moreno-Rueda, G. (eds.): Enciclopedia Virtual de los Vertebrados Españoles. Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales. Madrid.
SEO/BirdLife (Molina, B., Nebreda, A., Muñoz, A. R., Seoane, J., Real, R., Bustamante, J. y Del Moral, J. C., eds.). 2022. III Atlas de las aves en época de reproducción en España. SEO/BirdLife. Madrid.
Tellería, J. L., Asensio, B. y Díaz, M. 1999. Aves ibéricas. II. Paseriformes. J. M. Reyero Editor. Madrid.