I had to look twice. There are lots of sparrows in the garden but they are all tree sparrows. This is a bird I have seen here only once before in the last 20 years (in 2000 according to my BTO Garden BirdWatch data) - a house sparrow. House sparrows do live only a mile or so away but because this is a largely woodland setting it seems not to suit them.
As luck would have it, one of the locals popped in to share a seed or two with the stranger. Lets hope he decides to stick around. If he does I hope the others tell him about the sparrowhawk!
If you want to make the comparison, here's a better view of the tree sparrow.
Love it, as you know we are in the same situation, although I think we've seen them twice or thrice. The female was a real puzzle for a few minutes.
ReplyDeleteHouse sparrows are an introduced species here in North America. Unfortunately they do compete with our native cavity nesters, often killing bluebirds and tree swallows in the process. Not my favourite character.
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