OT: bird of prey, any twitchers in the house?

[gridgway]

Imagine my surprise to see in suburban Surrey a bird of prey in the garden dismembering a pidgeon...
DSC03570 by graham Ridgway, on Flickr

Anyone know what it is? Kestral?
Graham

[desert rat]

Looks like a sparrow hawk. Watching one circleing above the field behind our house yesterday.

[Lightweight_911]

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That looks like a Sparrowhawk ...

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[Lightweight_911]

Snap !

[gridgway]

Well that's good. I don't really have a clue (in most areas of life), but I said to Mrs R, that looks like a sparrow and it's a hawk. She said you're being a dimwit as usual, it's a kestrel!

We have seen several piles of feathers in the garden over recent weeks and not seen them in the past. We thought that somehow it might be foxes. Looks like the bird is living close by!

But this is suburbia, not the wilds of the countryside!

Thanks
Graham

[Sam]

They love a pigeon. The best bit is when the half eaten / half alive pigeon tries in vain to make a break for it and the Sparrowhawk pins it down a bit harder and resumes scoffing it alive. Nom nom nom.

[stichill99]

Sadly the enviromentalists are in awe of such predators and as their numbers grow they are having a devestating affect on smaller birds!

[brembo]

Sadly the enviromentalists are in awe of such predators and as their numbers grow they are having a devestating affect on smaller birds!

Our resident ducks produced sixty one ducklings this year,mainly down to Buzzards and Red Kites we are now down to nineteen ducklings

[Dougieboy1]

we have a few buzzards near us. They are known as the lazy bird of prey. Sit on a hedge post all day just looking at stuff. They do a lot of circling which i am told is called skydancing. Looks pretty cool to see 3 or 4 of them at it all at once. Now if i could catch one and train it to catch and eat moles, i would be very happy.

We also have a kestrel nest in one of the trees - i see it hovering sometimes over the garden or the field looking for food. Now if i could catch one and teach it to eat magpies and/or crows, that would also be a result. Am sure i read somewhere that kestrels (at least big ones can get up to 200mph in a dive!!!!

And yes, sparrow hawk.

Hawk, kestrel, kite - The tails are a giveaway. Kites have a forked tail, kestrels and hawks have a fan tail. Only kestrels can hover......

I have learned all this during lockdown walks. I would never have noticed them before!

We lost all our chickens to a fox last week so this week, i have been mainly fixing the posts in the run......new ones (ex battery rescue) arrive on the 4th. Free range eggs again!"