Long-tailed shrike returns to Rayalaseema scrublands as dry conditions reshape sightings

The long-tailed shrike, locally known as the kasai pitta, is being sighted again across the arid scrublands of Rayalaseema, where dry conditions make the small predator more visible. The bird, identified as Lanius schach, has been reported around several locations in Annamayya, Kadapa, Anantapur, Kurnool and Chittoor districts. Sightings have also been recorded along the Penna River belt and near the Erramala and Palakonda ranges.

The shrike often perches on tree trunks or power lines before diving at lizards, grasshoppers, mice and small snakes. It is known for impaling prey on thorns or barbed wire, a behaviour that has earned it the local butcher-bird name. Dr V.

V. Balasubramanyam, an associate professor of zoology at Sri Krishnadevaraya University, said impaling helps compensate for the bird’s weak talons. The technique allows it to tear flesh and store food during lean periods.

The species is classified as Least Concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and has a stable global population. However, the source material identifies significant local pressures in southern Rayalaseema. Scrublands are being lost to housing layouts, while pesticide use in mango, tomato and groundnut-growing areas reduces the insect prey on which the bird depends.

During the current El Niño year, the breeding of grasshoppers and beetles that feed its chicks has also declined. A senior forest official in Sri Sathya Sai district said sightings may have increased because sparse vegetation makes the birds easier to see. But the official also noted that dried grasslands and uncultivated fields make prey harder to find, raising concerns about the species’ breeding and survival if the scrub ecosystem continues to deteriorate.