Sometimes even the smallest and cutest members of the animal kingdom can turn out to be some of the most ruthless killers of all. Take for instance the shrike.

These tiny birds may not look like the typical predators in the wild, but in reality they are more than capable of applying a degree of brutality when dealing with their prey. Their family name, Lanius (Latin for "butcher"), even speaks about their capacity for barbarism toward their victims.

Science website "Wired" recently released a short video clip that shows just how "metal" shrikes can be as far hunting for their food is concerned. It highlights what these birds are willing to do just to make sure they get something to eat.

Compared to other large hunting birds such as a hawk or an eagle, shrikes don't have talons sharp enough to rip through its prey while holding on to it as well. They pick up their prey instead and impale them unto a sharp object to keep it in place as they proceed to devour its flesh using their knife-like beak.

"They are perching birds with delicate feet," Carola Haas, a wildlife expert from the Virginia Polytechnic Institute, explained.

"Consequently, they can´t hold on to their food and eat it at the same time."

Some of the shrikes' favorite food includes insects, lizards, field mice and even other small birds, which they would impale unto a thorn, a garden fork, or even a barbed wire.

Shrikes are also capable of killing prey even if they are not ready to eat them yet. These birds would leave their victims on the thorn or wire for a few days and then return to feed on them once they become hungry.

This technique of impaling their prey may have been adapted by the birds as a result of eating lubber grasshoppers, which are known to be toxic.

After placing these grasshoppers on a spike, shrikes would leave them there for one to two days in order to allow the toxins to wear off. They would then eat the insects once it is safe enough.

Photo: Michele Lamberti | Flickr