Garden Birds and wild birds thread.

A Grey Heron and a resident morning visitor @our babbling brook. Captured from our bedroom window with an S9 Galaxy, set with augmented sensor and switching between apertures f/1.5 and f/2.4. This new sensor improves the overall ambience so it can clean and improve images more effectively and also reducing light refraction from the running water.

I had to work really really hard to obtain a good depth of field with our widow obstructing vision, as a shallower depth would have distracted from my overall framing.

Both were shot at one quarter zoom at f2.4.

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simmo said:
Had a sparrowhawk in the garden on Friday. It had just caught something and then took to the very back of garden to eat it.

Put a few bird boxes up this year and waiting to see if anything uses them.
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Most of ths time all you see of a sparrowhawk is a flash of something .
Most of its attacks end in complete failure, but a beautiful bird to see hunting...not sure the songbirds would agree with my sentiments.
 
dennishasdoneit said:
Most of ths time all you see of a sparrowhawk is a flash of something .
Most of its attacks end in complete failure, but a beautiful bird to see hunting...not sure the songbirds would agree with my sentiments.
Click to expand...
Seen one a few times in the back garden over the years. I really felt guilty to see one having taken s sparrow from the feeder in the trees, but also thrilled at seeing him protecting his kill with his wings on the grass.
Wish I’d gotten a picture.
 
Kakhaber The Great said:
Male Sparrowhawk in the garden. Bigger than a thrush...

View attachment 12485
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Books dont tell the full story ..but ...the male spartowhawk is slighty bigger than a Mistle Thrush according to Collins guide,the observers book of birds and most ive seen down the years would agree with this.

The male Spartow hawk in the brilliant pic has its feathers puffed out exaggerating its size ..ive seen males sitting motionless on garden posts and had to look twice due to how small tney look.

The observers book of birds,dated 1960 has mistle thrush at 10.5 inches, Male sparrow hawk at 12 inches kestrel at 13.5

The collins guide to birds has the male Sparrowhawk 27 cm...
The Mistle thrush at 26cm.

Those two books may not be the most authorative ,but they both agree with my assertion.
Quite........
 
mancity2012_eamo said:
Seen one a few times in the back garden over the years. I really felt guilty to see one having taken s sparrow from the feeder in the trees, but also thrilled at seeing him protecting his kill with his wings on the grass.
Wish I’d gotten a picture.
Click to expand...
Alwats like to see raptors protecting their kill with wings outstretched
Altho the only real danger /threat would be a gang of Corvids,who know how to distract a Raptor and pinch its catch by using teamwork..

Not really a garden bird story ..but ive seen an Inland gulls feeding on food put out for songbirds ..and a team of Jackdaws torment the gull to distraction with attacks from all sides,one leading to a large tail feather being ripped out completely...a large scream and the gull gave up its meal and effed off.
Job done.
 
dennishasdoneit said:
Books dont tell the full story ..but ...the male spartowhawk is slighty bigger than a Mistle Thrush according to Collins guide,the observers book of birds and most ive seen down the years would agree with this.

The male Spartow hawk in the brilliant pic has its feathers puffed out exaggerating its size ..ive seen males sitting motionless on garden posts and had to look twice due to how small tney look.

The observers book of birds,dated 1960 has mistle thrush at 10.5 inches, Male sparrow hawk at 12 inches kestrel at 13.5

The collins guide to birds has the male Sparrowhawk 27 cm...
The Mistle thrush at 26cm.

Those two books may not be the most authorative ,but they both agree with my assertion.
Quite........
Click to expand...
No, I wasn't disputing. My own observation... I've got the Collins book, it's a great reference. This bird, unpuffed, I would put at 28-29cm. Hopefully I'll get a Mistle Thrush in the garden for comparison; the male Spawk certainly towers over a Song Thrush!

The female Spawk blasts through on occasion and I'd put that around 36cm, maybe more...
 
Kakhaber The Great said:
No, I wasn't disputing. My own observation... I've got the Collins book, it's a great reference. This bird, unpuffed, I would put at 28-29cm. Hopefully I'll get a Mistle Thrush in the garden for comparison; the male Spawk certainly towers over a Song Thrush!

The female Spawk blasts through on occasion and I'd put that around 36cm, maybe more...
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Yes the Female of the speices is more deadly than the male..up to 40cm

Ian Newton is/was probably this country's leadjng authority on the Sparrowhawk.i first read his studies back in 1986.very well respected.

Just looked up my copy of "The Sparrowhawk by Newton.
He states the smaller male is generally around 28cm.

Mistle thrush ,from a quick scan of a few of my books 27 cm.

Blackbird and Song Thrush are obviously a lot smaller,but ive completely ignored these as they dont fit my argument!! ;))

Dr Newton is/ was a senior scientist with The Natural Enviroment Research Council,educated at Oxford and Bristol university's.

H e has written over a 100 scientific papers and many books,on birds of prey, specialising in S/H.

This bird s my fav uk Raptor ,mainly due to its hunting techniques, which include ,chasing small birds into hedge bottoms..and then runningg after them on the ground using its long legs in hot pursuit.
This technique is more in line with the Secretary Bird on the plains of Africa as it chases Lizards and snakes stamping them to death!

A fascinating bird.
 
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mancity2012_eamo said:
Seen one a few times in the back garden over the years. I really felt guilty to see one having taken s sparrow from the feeder in the trees, but also thrilled at seeing him protecting his kill with his wings on the grass.
Wish I’d gotten a picture.
Click to expand...
came across a kestrel dismembering a thrush, as i approached it spread it's wings but stayed put, as i walked past. First and only time i've seen one from above, and the wings had a dark pink hue, quite exotic.
 
dennishasdoneit said:
Most of ths time all you see of a sparrowhawk is a flash of something .
Most of its attacks end in complete failure, but a beautiful bird to see hunting...not sure the songbirds would agree with my sentiments.
Click to expand...

I used to keep budgies for a hobby and the aviary had a 10x6 inside chill area with nesting boxes and roosts, coupled to a 10x6 outside flight with mesh and T and G. Anyway I digress because the day had been sunny and I had hosed down the birds on fine spray setting as they all clung to the mesh.

I had sat back down to unwind when all of a sudden, a woosh of air from above followed by the thunder of the sparrowhawks body slamming into the mesh. It stayed static for around 5 seconds then took off from whence it came.

A few of the FOC budgies lost a few toe nail clippings and I had to take around half a dozen of our runners indoors to settle back down for a few days, but thankfully they all recovered. For future protection I attached a load of old cd's dangling from the tree branches and before anyone asks .. the Yardbirds, Budgie and Hawkwind : /
 
Two Gun Bob said:
I used to keep budgies for a hobby and the aviary had a 10x6 inside chill area with nesting boxes and roosts, coupled to a 10x6 outside flight with mesh and T and G. Anyway I digress because the day had been sunny and I had hosed down the birds on fine spray setting as they all clung to the mesh.

I had sat back down to unwind when all of a sudden, a woosh of air from above followed by the thunder of the sparrowhawks body slamming into the mesh. It stayed static for around 5 seconds then took off from whence it came.

A few of the FOC budgies lost a few toe nail clippings and I had to take around half a dozen of our runners indoors to settle back down for a few days, but thankfully they all recovered. For future protection I attached a load of old cd's dangling from the tree branches and before anyone asks .. the Yardbirds, Budgie and Hawkwind : /
Click to expand...
No Eagles?
 
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