Lanius borealis

Formerly considered conspecific with L. excubitor Linnaeus, 1758 [Great Gray Shrike], but treated as separate on the basis of differences in plumage and mtDNA (Johnsen et al. 2010, Olsson et al. 2010, Peer et al. 2011). Lanius borealis is more closely related to L. ludovicianus, L. meridionalis (Temminck, 1820) [Southern Gray Shrike], and L. sphenocercus (Cabanis, 1873) [Chinese Gray Shrike] than to the nominate excubitor group (Olsson et al. 2010) (AOU 2017).

Breeds in North America from western and northern Alaska, northern Yukon, northwestern and southern Northwest Territories, and southwestern Kivalliq south to southern Alaska (west to the Alaska Peninsula), northwestern British Columbia, northern Alberta, northern Manitoba, northern Ontario, northern and central Quebec, and southern Labrador, and in the Old World west to western Siberia and south to extreme northwestern China, the Russian Altai, the Russian Tien Shan, northern Mongolia, and Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands. Winters in North America from central Alaska and the
southern portions of the breeding range in Canada, Minnesota, and northwestern Wisconsin south (irregularly) to northern California, central Nevada, northern Arizona, central New Mexico, northern Texas, northwestern Oklahoma, Kansas, central Missouri, northern Illinois, central Indiana, northern Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey, casually to the central Aleutians, south to the southern parts of California, Arizona, and New Mexico, to northern Texas, Arkansas, northern Tennessee, North Carolina, and Bermuda, and in Eurasia in the southern parts of the breeding range, northeastern China, uncommonly through Japan to Kyushu, and casually to eastern Europe and Norway.