DISTRIBUTION AND HABITAT PREFERENCE OF REDBACKED SHRIKES LANIUS-COLLURIO IN SOUTHERN AFRICA

Reporting rates of Redbacked Shrikes provided by the Southern African Bird Atlas Project (SABAP) and the Botswana Bird Atlas are combined in a distribution map covering the area south of the Kunene and Zambesi rivers. The species' main distribution south of 22-degrees-S coincides with the Savanna Biome (92% of squares with high reporting rates), sp reading to the Grassland (5%) and Nama-Karoo (3%) Biomes. As a rare va grant, the species may reach the Fynbos, Desert, and Succulent-Karoo B iomes. Within the Savanna Biome. the semi-arid parts are preferred. Lo wer reporting rates occur in the driest western areas as well as in th e more humid savannas to the north and along the south-east coast. Amo ng the different savanna types, the Kalahari Thornveld offers the larg est area for the species. The highest percentages of squares with high reporting rates are found in the Arid Lowveld and the Zululand Thornv eld.