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Oct 2020
7:59pm, 11 Oct 2020
1,716 posts
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bonners
Amazing scenes on the harbour boardwalks on this evening's walk. Just settled down to watch the turnstones when they all leapt up screaming as a bird of prey grabbed one and then disappeared into the gap under a dual hulled boat with its prey. Waited a while and neither came out again.
So, couple of questions, what would it have been, was very small, so I'm guessing a sparrowhawk as it did the smothering thing with its wings on its prey.
But, can sparrowhawks swim, just intrigued that it went into the water, was it trying to drown its prey? Could the sparrowhawk have got water logged itself and got into trouble?
Was it a sparrowhawk, it all happened so fast I wasn't sure, this sounds ridiculous, but when I first saw it, for a split second I thought it was a female blackbird. Very strange, never seen behaviour or hunting like it, I'd love to know if anyone can shed some light on it.
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Oct 2020
9:00pm, 11 Oct 2020
3,077 posts
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J2R
That's bizarre, bonners! Could it have been a merlin, from the size? I don't know whether merlins can swim - but marlins and mermaids can. 
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Oct 2020
9:20pm, 11 Oct 2020
47,060 posts
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Derby Tup
Male sparrowhawk is quite small
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Oct 2020
11:57am, 12 Oct 2020
4,172 posts
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steve45
Quite a thing to have seek bonners; good luck with the house. Worth it for House Martins!
Back to my Chaffinches of a couple of days ago---they were in fact the first in the garden for six years! Rare around her.
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Oct 2020
12:13pm, 12 Oct 2020
19,475 posts
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flanker
Number of dippers down the Carding Mill Valley yesterday afternoon, including a pair dipping away together and one so tame I could almost have stroked it. One of my favourite little bird
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Oct 2020
12:18pm, 12 Oct 2020
3,072 posts
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phal
That's strange. I saw Dipper in the Carding Mill Valley yesterday and on Saturday
Missed your pair though, but the photos are awesome.
Kites, buzzards and the biggest Thrush you have EVER seen on Sunday morning too.
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Oct 2020
12:26pm, 12 Oct 2020
3,078 posts
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J2R
In twitcherspeak, to dip is to miss out on seeing the bird you were looking for. So clearly in my visit to Carding Mill valley a couple of weeks ago, I was the 'dipper' - didn't see any of them despite looking for them and being convinced they would be there. I did see one a couple of days later elsewhere in Shropshire, though.
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Oct 2020
12:27pm, 12 Oct 2020
1,373 posts
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Roberto
Had a wren in the garden for the first time this morning.
Still haven't put the bird feed back out since the rat sighting. Thinking might put some out again though.
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Oct 2020
1:28pm, 12 Oct 2020
19,477 posts
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flanker
Oh, I'd forgotten all about SuperThrush
It was my first lockdown(ish) red kite.
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Oct 2020
2:17pm, 12 Oct 2020
3,079 posts
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J2R
Little flight of redwings over the house, first of year.
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