Northern fiscal

The northern fiscal is a member of the shrike family found through most of Sub-Saharan Africa. It used to be grouped with the southern fiscal. Together they were called the common fiscal. The fiscal gets its English and Afrikaans common names from its black and white 'suit-and-tie' appearance reminiscent of the taxman (‘fiscal’).

Loading map...

Distribution

Region

Sub-Saharan Africa

Typical Environment

Occurs widely across West, Central, and East Africa in open habitats such as savanna, thornscrub, farmland, pasture, and suburban gardens. Favors edges—fence lines, road verges, and hedgerows—where it can hunt from exposed perches. Common around human-altered landscapes and tolerant of light disturbance. Often seen on wires and posts, scanning for prey.

Altitude Range

Sea level to 2500 m

Climate Zone

Tropical

Characteristics

Size20–23 cm

Wing Span28–32 cm

Male Weight0.038 kg

Female Weight0.036 kg

Life Expectancy7 years

Ease of Keeping

Beginner friendly: 1/5

Useful to know

A classic shrike of open country, the northern fiscal was formerly lumped with the southern fiscal under the name 'common fiscal.' Its black-and-white 'suit-and-tie' look inspired the name 'fiscal,' likening it to a taxman. Like other shrikes, it often impales prey on thorns or barbed wire to store food and help tear it apart.

Gallery

Exhibiting the white 'V' on the back

Behaviour

Temperament

solitary and territorial

Flight Pattern

short rapid wingbeats with brief glides

Social Behavior

Typically occupies territories singly or in pairs, especially during the breeding season. Pairs are strongly territorial and use prominent perches for display and hunting. Nest is a bulky cup placed in shrubs or small trees; clutches are usually several eggs and both parents care for young.

Migratory Pattern

Resident

Song Description

A varied mix of clear whistles, chattering notes, and harsh scolds delivered from exposed perches. Often incorporates mimicry of other birds and environmental sounds, with phrases repeated in short sequences.

Unlock detailed bird insights with Pro access today.

Identification

Leg Colorblack

Eye Colordark brown

Plumage

Glossy black upperparts with clean white underparts and bold white scapular 'shoulder' patches; conspicuous white in the wings and outer tail. Sleek, compact shrike build with a long tail and strong, hooked bill.

Feeding Habits

Diet

Primarily hunts large insects such as grasshoppers, beetles, and caterpillars, but also takes spiders, lizards, small rodents, and occasionally small birds. Employs sit-and-wait hunting, dropping to the ground or pouncing into low vegetation. Frequently impales prey on thorns or barbed wire to cache food and assist in tearing tough items.

Preferred Environment

Hunts from fences, wires, bushes, and isolated trees along edges of fields, savannas, and roadsides. Readily uses human structures as perches in agricultural and suburban areas.

Population

Total Known Populationunknown

Northern flicker

The northern flicker or common flicker is a medium-sized bird of the woodpecker family. It is native to most of North America, parts of Central America, Cuba, and the Cayman Islands, and is one of the few woodpecker species that migrate. Over 100 common names for the northern flicker are known, including yellowhammer, clape, gaffer woodpecker, harry-wicket, heigh-ho, wake-up, walk-up, wick-up, yarrup, and gawker bird. Many of these names derive from attempts to imitate some of its calls.

Northern fulmar

The northern fulmar, Arctic fulmar, or simply fulmar, is an abundant seabird found primarily in subarctic regions of the North Atlantic and North Pacific oceans. There has been one confirmed sighting in the Southern Hemisphere, with a single bird seen south of New Zealand. Fulmars come in one of two colour morphs; a light one in temperate populations, with white head and body and grey wings and tail, and a dark one in arctic populations, which is uniformly grey; intermediate birds are common. Though similar in appearance to gulls, fulmars are in fact members of the family Procellariidae, which includes petrels and shearwaters.

Northern gannet

The northern gannet is a seabird, the largest species of the gannet family, Sulidae. It is native to the coasts of the Atlantic Ocean, breeding in Western Europe and Northeastern North America. It is the largest seabird in the northern Atlantic. The sexes are similar in appearance. The adult northern gannet has a mainly white streamlined body with a long neck, and long and slender wings. It is 87–100 cm long with a 170–180 cm (67–71 in) wingspan. The head and nape have a buff tinge that is more prominent in breeding season, and the wings are edged with dark brown-black feathers. The long, pointed bill is blue-grey, contrasting with black, bare skin around the mouth and eyes. Juveniles are mostly grey-brown, becoming increasingly white in the five years it takes them to reach maturity.

Northern grey-headed sparrow

The northern grey-headed sparrow, also known as the grey-headed sparrow, is a species of bird in the sparrow family Passeridae, which is resident in much of tropical Africa. It occurs in a wide range of open habitats, including open woodlands and human habitation, often occupying the same niche as the house sparrow does in Eurasia.