Kestrel

It's more likely to have been a sparrowhawk you've seen chasing your birds :-)  Providing good cover for the birds is the best way of reducing predation from a sparrowhawk so having trees close by is a great way of helping your little birds escape.

With bird houses patience is the key, it can take a long time before birds will make use of boxes and they may not use it at all it just really is down to luck and siting in the best place to be honest.

Welcome to the forum! :-)

Hi KatTai

I really thought it was a Kestrel.  From the pictures I have seen of them, I thought it wasn't as big as a Sparrowhawk.  I just wondered why you thought it more likely to be a Sparrowhawk?  I need educating so look forward to any advice.  I shall just continue to be patient with the birdbox, and hope for the best.

Thank you

Diana

Sparrowhawks specialise in hunting garden birds, kestrels tend to eat small rodents and invertebrates.  Male sparrowhawks are about the same size as a female kestrel so there can be some similarities in size and in general sparrowhawks are more common garden visitors especially where people feed birds which is their main prey item.

Hi Arumlily

In terms of both length and wingspan Sparrowhawks are actually slightly smaller than Kestrels and are the raptors most likely to be seen in gardens. They are specialist predators of birds and use mainly bash 'n dash tactics to snatch a meal. They are adrenaline fuelled high speed - high agility creatures and larger females will even tackle Magpies often very successfully.

Kestrels' preferred prey is small mammals which they hunt over farmland and short grassland either by hovering or from an elevated perch (like a telegraph wire). They will resort to catching small birds if voles etc are in short supply and can be seen in urban areas.

JBNTS 

While the culprit is more likely to be a Sparrowhawk Kestrels will hunt small birds although I have never seen it happen in a garden enviroment but birds do keep surprising us with their behavior

Hi JohnB

From your bash 'n dash description, I am now convinced that it was a Sparrowhawk that came to my garden.  I have learnt somthing new today, so thank you all for my further education on birds.

Diana

Hi JohnB

From your bash 'n dash description, I am now convinced that it was a Sparrowhawk that came to my garden.  I have learnt somthing new today, so thank you all for my further education on birds.

Diana

I know this is many years later, but just wanted to add something for anyone arriving here via Google etc.

I just saw a male kestrel take a small bird from under a peanut feeder.  It came in bash 'n dash, low and fast, crashing right through the lavender.  I assumed it was a sparrowhawk as it arrived.  But I was sitting in the garden just a few metres away, and had a clear look at it.  Lovely male kestrel with slate grey tail, brown back,  black flight feathers.  Flew off with its catch intact, I assume to feed chicks (June 2nd and the kestrel chicks on springwatch are still in their nest)

I also witnessed a Kestrel come in to my garden a couple of times, went into the Pyracantha where the birds were hiding and took a Starling both times, the shrieks from the Starlings were blood-curdling!  Definitely a Kestrel as they were nesting opposite my house, much too speedy for pictures!