Fetch Birdwatchers
1 lurker |
165 watchers
Oct 2021
11:41am, 20 Oct 2021
8,654 posts
|
Alice the Camel
I have a bird question. Would you mind having a read of my blog and offer your expert opinions? Thanks very much! fetcheveryone.com/blog/39396/2021/10/435858 |
Oct 2021
11:42am, 20 Oct 2021
2,891 posts
|
flyingfinn
Overnighted by Budle Bay just south of Holy Island last night. Watched big flocks of Pinkies depart their roost this morning. Also had lots of Shelduck, Barnacles, Blackwits, Curlew, Dunlin, Redshank, Golden and at least two Grey Plover, a Grey Heron and Great White Egret, Teal, Wigeon, Shovellor, Great BB, Herring, Common and Black headed Gulls and a Peregrine looking for elevenses. I would liked to have hung around to nearer high tide (3pm) but I need to get out in the Cheviots whilst there is still plenty of daylight left.
|
|
Oct 2021
11:52am, 20 Oct 2021
2,892 posts
|
flyingfinn
Alice, your picture does indeed look like a Red Kite despite the lack of a clear fork. The fork isn't always so obvious when they're not soaring. But I doubt a Red Kite or a Buzzard is responsible for your pigeon massacre that sounds like a Sparrowhawk kill. They tend to rip the chest open to get at the good meat and spread feathers etc everywhere.
|
Oct 2021
11:52am, 20 Oct 2021
52,211 posts
|
Derby Tup
Sounds ace
|
|
Oct 2021
11:53am, 20 Oct 2021
52,212 posts
|
Derby Tup
Bit of a cross-post Definitely a red kite I’d say (and I used to see them daily on work commute through Harewood) |
|
Oct 2021
12:11pm, 20 Oct 2021
8,658 posts
|
Alice the Camel
Thank you both, I’ve learned something today! It does sound as though it was a sparrowhawk. I’m not aware of any around here though. I shall keep my eyes open. |
Oct 2021
12:19pm, 20 Oct 2021
5,301 posts
|
um
I'm not sure I've ever seen one (or at least id'd one) in flight AtC - only ever sitting on a post or chimney vantage point, or looking fat and pleased next to a pile of feathers as you described.
|
|
Oct 2021
1:06pm, 20 Oct 2021
52,214 posts
|
Derby Tup
Sparrowhawk are secretive ‘dashers’. I think they skulk about because they attract a lot of attention if out in the open. They are incredibly quick over short distances but do not stoop or dive like a peregrine. A commotion in or around bushes or hedgerows is usually the first sign of a hunting bird. Even the tiny males are extremely aggressive. Their feet give a good clue as to their deadliness
|
|
Oct 2021
1:42pm, 20 Oct 2021
8,661 posts
|
Alice the Camel
How big are they, roughly?
|
|
Oct 2021
2:18pm, 20 Oct 2021
52,215 posts
|
Derby Tup
A big female is around the size of a jackdaw or a kestrel, but the male is appreciably smaller, as is usually the case with other hawks and falcons
|
Related Threads
-
Bird song watch
Jul 2024
-
Bird Attacks
Jul 2020
-
How do fetchies survive seagull breeding season?
Jun 2019
-
Swallows - Who's got swallows?
Apr 2016
-
Nesting Seagulls!
Jul 2013
-
Hedgehog watch and other nocturnal garden visitors
Dec 2024
-
Morning Light: The Fetchland Gardening Wire
Nov 2024
-
Beekeeping Fetchies
Jul 2023
-
Sunlight, Warmth, Happiness… and triffids
Jul 2020
-
No eye deer - the wildlife photo thread
Dec 2024