Eurasian Sparrowhawk

The Eurasian sparrowhawk is a small bird of prey. Adult males have bluish-grey upperparts and orange-barred underparts, while females and juveniles are brown above with brown barring below. It specialises in catching woodland birds but can be found in any habitat and often hunts garden birds in towns and cities. Males tend to take smaller birds, including tits, finches and sparrows, while females mainly take thrushes and starlings and can kill birds of 500 g or more (Wikipedia, general species account).

It is found through the temperate and subtropical parts of the Old World. Birds from colder regions of northern Europe and Asia migrate south for winter, while southern birds are resident or disperse. It breeds in suitable woodland of any type, in a nest of twigs in a tree up to 60 cm across, laying four or five pale blue, brown-spotted eggs.