Seeing as how we've had a few bird watching threads

Saw this brute ripping his prey apart - right in front of the aviary!!

For some reason the image link won't work but here you go: https://ibb.co/K7K3hNS

 

I’m not an expert but that’s a fine looking beast - sparrowhawk?

 

Aye, a juvenile sparrowhawk.

 

I think so, but it looked bigger than than I would expect from them. It was a sizable bird it had downed.

 

Sparrowhawk.

We had one in our garden about 3 weeks ago.

 

The next one on the link is better.

 

That's a juvenile - kin ell, it was about 8 inch breast to head and stared me down as I walked outside

 

Females are bigger than males, can grow to around 40cm beak to tail with an 80 cm wingspan.

 

Wow. What a beautiful bird.

 

Wonderful fierce looking birds but can be bad news in and around gardens if you've got feeders up. There's a pair keep dropping in (literally, at what looks like 100mph) and picking birds off the feeders. I've moved all the feeders to more sheltered sites and I've seen birds leap off them into the tree and the hawk has crashed into the foliage, gone through the branches and still got them.

 

It can be upsetting to see but they have to eat as well, predator numbers are determined by prey numbers so despite the propaganda that had been shouted out by Songbird survival extremists, an increase in predator numbers mean that the prey species are actually doing well and not vice versa.

 

Marvellous.

 

Spot on. It's the balance of nature, and it works perfectly well - until humans interfere.

 

The other day, a cat was stood at the top of the steps leading to our garden. At the same time, a blackbird was feeding on our bird table. It noticed the cat and flew to the steps. It started screeching and flapping it's wings. This startled the cat, which began backing off. Not satisfied with this reaction, the blackbird hopped up the steps, continuing to screech and flap it's wings. At which point the cat ran off, closely followed by this blackbird doing an impressive impersonation of an angry goose! A few moments later, the blackbird returned to our bird table and continued it's meal.
We've not seen the cat since!

 

It's like an episode of Wildlife on One with Richard Attenborough! Excellent story mate

 

When the blackbirds demand to be fed meal worms, I feed them meal worms!
Other than Jurassic Park, I'm unaware of Richard Attenborough's fondness to wildlife!

 

Pah! Splitting hairs! Richard / David all the same to me

 

Did you enjoy David's performance as Pinkie in Brighton Rock?

 

before my time mate

edit - I had to google it to find out what it was

 

As they say on Pointless, "Claiming it was before you were born is no excuse!"