The Shrike

A fondness for the grasshoppers
A rapacious bird of prey
A Shrike who uses thorns
And barbed wire
In its weird display
Catching prey like crazy
And bringing it to bear
Thrusting it upon a spike
To hang there in mid air

It is known as the butcher bird
A song bird in a way
Of impaling victims
On natural hooks
To sweat there
Through the day
The Lubber Grasshopper
Is infact
Toxic through and through
But the shrike discovered
That by hanging it
For days
What it does do

Is loses its toxicity
And becomes a tasty treat
Air dried a phenomena
Making it good to eat
On these hooks its so simple
To leisurely tear away
Chunks of flesh
Air dried at will
On any given day

“Romalea Micoptera”
The Shrikes best delicacy
Stews it in the air it does
And its toxicity
Dissipates completely
And it becomes so good
The Shrike has found the answer
Just because it could

A song bird without talons
It displays its kills
Clearly it has a dark side
As its little gut it fills
The shrike it lives
In Canada
and in the USA
a bird known as the butcher
Who puts its victims on display