The adult sparrowhawk has been here several times in the past week or so but most of the time the view has been like this.
We have had a lot of rain in the past few days and the wind has been from the north so my sparrowhawk window has been smeared with rain. When it stops raining I clean the window and the view improves.
It is a strange optical illusion that when he sits with his back to me he looks much larger.
The behaviour of this mature bird is interesting compared when with the previous juveniles. He takes very little interest in the small birds trapped in the gooseberry bushes but instead sits watching for potential prey coming in towards the feeder. When he makes an attack he usually doesn't return but I can't tell if that means he has made a kill or has gone off to hunt elsewhere. I haven't seen him eat a kill near the window but I have seen signs of kills in other parts of the garden. I have also seen him fly to the perch and start wiping his beak which usually means he has just eaten.
This short video shows how he usually is on the perch. It is interesting to watch his eyes (easier in real life than on the video) as they swivel and accommodate as he tracks the flights of potential prey.
Here he sets off on another attack.
I have seen less of the juvenile bird but there probably isn't much he can do if the older bird is here.
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