Sparrow Hawk ? WOW !

[MrsKP]

just had this huge thing fly into the garden, with a reddish breast, swooped in, missed all the birdies, and flew off !!!!

WOW !

:o

[MrsKP]

[tim]

Reddish breast? Supersonic??

[teresa]

Oh yes stunning birds, one caught a bird in my garden last year oh the noise was spine chilling. Such is the way of nature .

[MrsKP]

could well have been tim, he didn't hang around long enough for me to introduce myself, but the MO fits.

hope he doesn't feel inclined to carry out his evil (but natural deeds) in my garden.

::)

[keef]

Sparrow hawks are only about the size of a pigeon. Could have been a red kite.. I amazed how many Kites there are about now, I saw three on the way to work on Monday - and i only have to drive 6 miles.

[teresa]

Oh I wish I could see one of these!

http://www.rspb.org.uk/birds/guide/r/redkite/index.asp

well one day perhaps.

[MrsKP]

looked a bit larger than a pigeon, but i didn't see any white markings either.  but then again, i only saw him/her for a fleeting swoop before it disappeared over the hedge.

that's the problem with going to work, you don't get to see what happens during the day  :-[

[Robert_Brenchley]

Kites are carrion and small animal eaters; they're too slow to take birds. That sounds like a big female sparrowhawk.

[keef]

We've had Kite's come down in our back Garden (which in the middle of nowhere mind you), I don'nt think there after the small birds. I reckon its young kites just investigating.

If you want to see some kites, if your ever driving down the A34 keep your eyes peeled between Didcot and the M4, mainly this bit that goes over the downs - I see them there all the time.

[Robert_Brenchley]

I used to see them once in a while in Cornwall, it was just a case of looking closely at every 'buzzard' just in case it wasn't. I also saw peregrine, goshawk and black kite. That was quite some years ago; there will be more kites now.