Bird Scene I
didn’t see a sparrowhawk in England until the mid 80s as their numbers had been decimated in the by organo-chlorine pesticides like DDT. These poisons had accumulated in their bodies causing the shells of their eggs to thin so that they were breaking in the nest. Sparrowhawks had vanished from most agricultural areas of Britain.
Oddly though, I’m pretty sure my
grandmother saw one in the late 70s. She described a bird chasing a thrush into her Warwickshire greenhouse and crashing into the glass. She said it lay stunned on the ground and that it had obviously hit the pane so hard that it had bent its beak! Sparrowhawks do have fiercely hooked bills, which they use to dismember their prey and this, together with the dashing nature of the chase she described, all adds up to reasonable circumstantial evidence. Once the poisons were banned
from farms the population rapidly expanded out of the more remote parts of Britain and, now gamekeepers are generally more enlightened than they used to be. These fine little hawks are probably more common now than they have been for centuries. Sparrowhawks truly are ferocious
predators of birds. They catch birds by ambushing them or sometimes by chasing them down in a seemingly reckless pursuit. Very often you’ll see one following the hedge line, slipping from one side to another in the hope of surprising a victim. Hiding in undergrowth is no defence though as sparrowhawks are quite happy to follow their prey on foot and, with needle sharp talons on the end of very long legs, they can winkle out birds from the depths of most hedges or bramble thickets. Females are a lot
With Chris Pendleton This month Chris looks at the sparrowhawk
bigger than males and generally hunt larger birds - probably an adaptation that allows a pair to exploit a wider range of prey species within their territory. From personal observation I’ve noticed that females often tackle wood pigeons whereas the smaller males seem to prefer finches, sparrows and thrushes. It is sometimes quite distressing to witness a sparrowhawk kill. They often don’t take a lot of trouble to finish off their victims before starting to pluck and eat them. But we can’t make moral judgements of wild creatures and besides, there is now a predator in our woods that’s doing to sparrowhawks exactly what sparrowhawks do to other birds - the goshawk. Goshawks look like giant sparrowhawks and, despite being closely related, are happy to make a meal of their smaller cousins. Goshawks may be native to Britain but it’s thought that most of the increasing population of this
magnificent raptor are descended from escaped falconers’ birds. Sparrowhawks are most easily seen in early spring when they soar high above their chosen nesting wood but, at any time, if you hear the alarm calls of swallows and starlings the chances are you’ll see the distinctive broad winged and long tailed silhouette of a sparrowhawk. Unsurprisingly, other birds keep a careful eye on them and mob them persistently from a safe distance.
n
August 2011 11
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84