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ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

Sparrowhawk in the warehouse (1 Viewer)

Larry Sweetland

Larry Sweetland

Formerly 'Larry Wheatland'
Blimey, there's a Sparrowhawk in the warehouse! This is most entertaining for the rest of the folks working here. It seems pretty freaked out, dashing about and perching on beams in the roof. It can't seem to work out how to get out.
 
I remember one of those animal rescue programmes chasing a Sprawk about for ages trying to catch it.

In my (er... very limited) experience birds seem to head for windows, so are there roof lights that that can be left open.

Other than that, I can only think of trying the RSPCA or a wildlife rescue group.

D
 
Thanks Delia and Jon. We think she left before the shutters went down, as there were no sightings for the last half hour, and she was very active.

A positive thing was that it was good to see how interested and impressed by the bird everyone was. We regularly get feral pigeons, rarely gull and Robins get "stuck" for a while. But never this.
 
I'm confused about your sparrowhawk. is it a Eurasian kestrel, or is sparrowhawk different? I know it's not our American Kestrel :)
 
Thanks. I blame my bird obsession on our falco sparverius.
I saw that movie "Kes" the other day..from the 60s?
I could barely understand the accents although I love hearing them.
Adorable movie. Now I look forward to reading that book on which that was based..A Falcon for a Knave.
 
The bird is still in the warehouse after all, and we can't shift it. Latest plan is to burn a CD of it's call and try and lure it out to a car stereo outside. We'll shut everything down for a bit. Hope it works, or we don't know what to do. It's a large veggie food warehouse, so maybe we'll have to try a food lure of Soya Sparrow or Cheatin' Chaffinch!
 
Larry Wheatland said:
Latest plan is to burn a CD of it's call and try and lure it out to a car stereo outside.
Click to expand...

Would be impressed if that works, seems a difficult bird. How big are the doors - large warehouse style things at one end? Roof very high?

No possibility to open doors/windows and one end and get all employess to line up and drive it down with rags on high sticks, etc?
 
The tape lure didn't work, and sent the bird up the other end of the warehouse. Shame cos I know that quite a few people manage to tape lure "difficult" accipiters into view in far flung forests. Maybe it being a female doesn't help.

The warehouse is over 100m by about 50m. Main prob seems to be that there's a lot of height above the "escape hole" (which is large enough to drive 3 articulated lorries through side by side if you wanted, but not one sparrowhawk!), and the bird seems determined to stay as high up as it can. It's started loooking a bit tired and dishevelled.

Someone got in touch with Raptor Rescue, via the RSPB, and their suggestion was to put out some fresh meat by the entrance this evening. Seems a bit odd, but what else?
 
I assume you have tried switching off the lights and then trying to drive it towards the brightness of the open doors? Alternatively you could always invite me along to take a photo of it. That should ensure that it left the scene before I arrived.;)

Ron
 
Throw a few crumbs of bread outside the warehouse entrance, hopefully this will attract House Sparrows. On seeing these the Sparrowhawk will immediately depart via said entrance (exit), decimate the sparrow flock, and head off into the wild blue yonder.

Or at least that's what ought to happen if we are to believe the nonsense posted on another thread.
 
If it seems determined to stay, just go online and buy some common cagebirds like the odd Siberian Thrush, Oriental Turtle Dove or Citril Finch, release a few every day into the warehouse and keep the Sprawk happy and well fed on those which don't manage to escape until next autumn when the roof blows off in the next set of gales.
 
Surely the bird must be desperate for water at this point.
That should bait a trap more effectively than a host of sparrows.
 
Cut a bath sponge into the shape of a House Sparrow, soak it in water, stick it on the end of a long pointy stick, and wave it about.

It probably won't do the job but it'll make for a memorable day at work.
 
Sad news I'm afraid. It was found dead this morning:-C

Interestingly, the guy who found it said that a relative who has worked in warehouses around Avonmouth for many years had this to say: We've had a few birds of prey get stuck over the years, including owls, they find their way out, except a Sparrowhawk, which couldn't work out how to get out, and died.
 
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