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night sparrowhawk.
mags1967

night sparrowhawk. (accipiter nisus)

yes you guessed it he came back tonight but he was in my front garden somewhere he has not visited for a while.i have a berberis shrub and the sparrows hide in this thorny bush but to night when i heard the sparrows and went out he was actually in the bush hunting.think he maybe feeding a female as i have never seen him go into this bush before.anyway he flew out on seeing me and flew in the other direction only to fly back and perch on my fence looked at me then the remaining sparrows who had not fled to another safety zone and he went into hunt mode again not bothering with me until a neighbour appeared about 40 feet probably more away and he flew off.this behaviour had me thinking does he recognise me or is it just my garden he sees as holding no threats and if so why would he fly off when the person was not near the garden and i was less than 12 feet from him.
Habitat
my garden
Location
wishaw,scotland
Date taken
22/04/2015
Scientific name
accipiter nisus
Equipment used
olympus e-400
He sees you as no threat to him from his previous encounters, so he lets you take this Super shot Margaret, Tfs
 
Great capture and narrative, Margaret. I think they get used to what we do, rather than how we look. I can wear any of a number of coats for the garden, and the birds (including Fred) don't react any differently. Even my son can wear one of my coats and get the same lack of a reaction. However, if I move faster or slower than usual, or make an unusual noise (a cough for example) the birds immediately become more wary.
 
Interesting narrative, Margaret, and a great portrait of your visitor.
 
Supporter
It does sound as if you've become a trusted garden feature there. I doubt he realizes that the concentrations of sparrows and other wee birds in the garden is thanks to your efforts. Not trying to give you any guilt feelings over that, by the way. In percentage of the small bird population, I'm sure he would take his share - and no more than his share - feeders or no. And in balance, also the small bird populations benefit from it.
 
A wonderful species and capture. Amazing how they can adapt. Hope it does not scare of any peddlers.
 

Media information

Category
Britain & Europe
Added by
mags1967
Date added
View count
204
Comment count
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