So drinking my coffee this morning while watching my routine garden visitors flying about the garden....robins chasing each other....blackbirds darting about the ground , all the little tits and finches tucking into breakfast and the squirrel attempting to climb the pole only to keep sliding back down it (very amusing for me), but he soon gave up and went for the easier option of the suet pellets/peanuts on my window feeder . He looks at me as if can she she me? I wont move just incase.....we play this game all the time until I usually walk away and give him peace to eat, however as i was walking away I noticed the garden had gone silent......can you spot the hunter?
I spent the next thirty minutes taking lots of pictures and videos of the Sparrowhawk (Juvenile I think).
It just sat looking all around , stsnding on one foot mostly!, while the crows were in the trees cawing like mad and the squirrel just carried on stuffing his cheeks....
suddenly out the corner of my eye I saw the squirrel jumping along the top of the fence towards the Sparrowhawk as if it never saw it or it was being brave.....or stupid...
Sparra flapped a wing after a tense 5 seconds and the squirrel flew down the side of the fence and into the neighbours garden so am guessing the squirrel was just blind on approach
what a joy to witness
and to be able to watch such a beautiful bird for so long...made my day
(Pardon the Scottish Accent)
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
Great to have in the garden. It's got a fabulous stare, even if in pic 4 it looks slightly cross-eyed very intense
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Nige Flickr
I felt like it was actually staring down the camera at me half the time
It looks different to the other 3 sparrahawks that have visited. Must be a good few around my area I guess
Lot to learn
What fabulous photos Linda, and a superb moment to capture, and yes, I'm (nicely) jealous.
I could imagine the eerie silence the the sparrowhawk arrives, I've heard it many times around here when the buzzards get active, and then the furore of the larger birds trying to attack the buzzards and defend their nests.
Mike
Flickr: Peak Rambler
Linda257 said:Thanks Mike, captured it on vidoe aswell but unable to load Usually the first thing I hear is a thud off the window(usually a pigeon) and thats when I know the sparrowhawk is on the hunt so perhaps this time it had already eaten and it was simply "fed-up"
You're welcome, and I have to say, with my limited experience (did I say limited? Make the extremely limited :D), the sparrowhawk did look satisfied.
Video uploading, can only be done using something like YouTube, then you can share the link in this or any other posting.