In June 2012, as part of a Nature Iraq conservation programme, I spent two days surveying birds and other wildlife on the slopes of Shirin mountain (36.94° N 44.20° E), above the town of Barzan, Iraqi Kurdistan, close to the border with Turkey. On 8 June 2012 at c1780 m asl, I noticed two Lesser Grey Shrikes Lanius minor, which I quickly realised were a pair, actively catching insects and carrying them to what I presumed was a nest site in an oak Quercus aegilop. Oaks, mostly scattered, but also in fairly dense patches, were the dominant tree on the rocky slopes (Plate 1). I watched the shrikes for over an hour as they hunted grasshoppers (Orthoptera: Caelifera), taking them to the nest site. The birds spotted the grasshoppers from a prominent look-out at the top of a Pistacia eurycarpa (Plates 2, 3). The pair made at least five visits to the nest site during the hour. I made a cursory look for the nest, which appeared to be c4–5 m above the ground, but I could not locate it looking up through the dense foliage and I didn’t want to draw attention to it as a shepherd boy seemed curious about my activities. On the following day, 9 June, the pair was still taking food to the nest site, regularly from 07.00–at least 10.00 h. During this time I located another pair c200 m away, which were engaged in full courtship with much bowing and tail raising by the male; nearby a third male was singing, which suggests they were breeding in a loose group. Lesser Grey Shrike is sometimes solitary, but more typically breeds in neighbourhood groups of 3–7 pairs (Cramp & Perrins 1993).
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