Early autumn is a really good time to watch out for a very special bird in your garden.
Young sparrowhawks are striking out on their own into the big, wide world and we get a lot of queries about mystery birds of prey seen in gardens. Roughly 90 per cent of the time, they turn out to be sparrowhawks. If you're not sure if you've seen a sparrowhawk, check out our identification page.
Some people aren't fond of seeing these predators in their garden. As the cliche goes, nature is red in tooth (or beak) and claw and sometimes that can be a bit too close to home.
When I'm lucky enough to see a sparrowhawk, I wish it good luck. Only 10 per cent of its hunting attempts will be successful!
Being an effective hunter is never easy. And it's even more difficult if you're a young bird which doesn't have the benefit of experience. Only 34 per cent of sparrowhawks hatched this year will see their first birthday next spring, and lack of hunting know-how plays a large part in that.
Seen well, a sparrowhawk is a magnificent, beautiful bird. But all too often, this is the kind of view you get, as they whizz out of sight!
Tell us if you've had an encounter with a hunter recently - please leave a comment!
Thanks for all your comments!
I saw one swooping and diving on the edge of a field upsetting a few crows, they really do move fast. Location was Haddington, East Lothian.
We have had a Sparrowhawk in our garden for a few days. It seems to have a bad eye & just sits either on the shed roof or the fence. I got quite close to it & it just sat there.
We have a lot of Sparrows in our garden amongst other small birds so I suppose its an attraction for this bird.
Have just seen a bird of prey in the garden for the first time, gone too quick to take a photo. It created an enormous kerfuffle among the large population of sparrows that feed in the garden who all dived for cover. From the above article it was very definitely a juvenile sparrowhawk obviously after a quick spot of lunch! Beautiful bird.
I saw my first young sparrow-hawk in my garden this weekend! It was eating a sparrow. I live in a very built up area in south London so this was a great sight. I have a bird feeding station to try and encourage as many birds as possible and I grow plants that produce either flowers for the wildlife or berries for the birds. Unfortunately we get a lot of crows and the frighten off a lot of the small birds like the blue tits. I do have a big sparrow community which is great to see feeding every day. They wait in the hedges for me to fill up the feeders!