BIJLSMA RG (1986) Short contributions: Decline in numbers of wintering Great Grey Shrikes Lanius excubitor. LIMOSA 59 (2): 94-94.

Great Grey Shrike Lanius excubitor Decline in numbers of wintering Great Grey Shrikes Lanius excubitor Since the mid-seventies, the number of wintering Great Grey Shrikes seriously declined on the SW. Veluwe (c. 20000 ha) in the central part of the Netherlands (fig. 1). Furthermore, the birds ceased to winter in farmland; heatherland and clear-fellings are the only habitats occupied nowadays. Since the Great Grey Shrike increased as a breeding bird in Fenno-Scandinavia (being the main origin of wintering birds in the Netherlands), it is thought that the decline in the Netherlands is the result of a modification in migratory behaviour, with at present the birds mainly wintering in northern Europe as a result of the succession of mild winters in the seventies (cf. Olsson 1981).

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