Rare white-fronted shrike draws hundreds to Virolahti cemetery

Hundreds of birdwatchers have travelled to Virolahti church cemetery to see a rare white-fronted shrike, Yle reports. The bird was first spotted there on Friday and was still in the area on Monday.

The observation has proceeded calmly, according to Anna Kinnunen, the church rector. She said the birdwatchers had behaved politely and respected the fact that they were at a cemetery.

The bird also brought an unexpected moment of joy to a wedding party at the church.

“There was a wedding over the weekend, and the couple admired this special sight with us,” Kinnunen said.

She said there had been enough space at the cemetery for both the birdwatchers and the congregation’s activities. Cemetery workers have continued working normally and have also had the chance to see the species, which has been recorded in Finland only once before.

The bird has travelled far off course

Eetu Paljakka, from the observation committee of the Kymenlaakso Ornithological Society, said the white-fronted shrike prefers park-like environments but is usually found in entirely different parts of the world.

“The species occurs, for example, in Turkey, and for the winter the bird should head south, to Africa, for instance. The bird has therefore chosen completely the wrong direction,” he said.

Birds from various species occasionally stray into Finland. Such individuals may face a risk of dying, Paljakka said.

“Migration is dangerous, and the survival prospects of strays that have come this far are not very high,” he said.

White-fronted shrikes usually migrate at night. Although there were also rainy nights over the weekend, the bird had not yet left Virolahti.

Food may be helping it prepare for migration

The bird’s next movements will depend on the weather and the availability of food, Paljakka said.

“If it finds food, it may stay in one place for even a week,” he said.

The white-fronted shrike is a bird of prey that eats large insects. The individual at Virolahti cemetery has been observed eating at least one large moth.

The bird is now probably feeding and preparing for the long migration back to its usual range.

The white-fronted shrike has been recorded in Finland only once before, more than 40 years ago in 1982.