The funny thing is I have got so used to him being here that I don't take much notice of the sparrowhawk these days, other than to check if he is here. I have now seen him in the garden every day since Christmas Eve but most of the time he doesn't do much. He spends a lot of time sitting and watching, sometimes for hours at an end. He does less preening than last winter's bird but makes more kills in the garden. He can overdo it at times, spending so long in the kitchen garden that all the birds disappear. It is a bit like overfishing - you have to be careful you don't get too greedy. The birds normally empty the feeder there in less than two days but at present it lasts a week. Here is the reason why.
He also hunts more often outside the sitting room and kitchen windows.
At the weekend he upped his game and caught a blackbird (100g) which has a lot more meat than his usual blue tits (10g). He was very wary because he was out in the open and he soon flew off with his prize to eat it in private.
Despite that he was back again early the next morning, looking for breakfast.
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