Photo Gallery

May 2018

Sparrowhawk, aptly named

Sparrowhawk
15-05-2018
Mike Williamson
Edinburgh
Lothian

Sparrowhawk, aptly named: Sparrowhawk, 15-05-2018, Mike Williamson, Edinburgh, Lothian

Sparrowhawk, aptly named The previous day, our garden had been visited by a noisy, squabbling squad of starlings – so it was no surprise to hear what sounded like the same thing the following morning. But, when I went to the kitchen window, this is what I saw. The male house sparrow was gripping the sparrowhawk’s leg and struggling manfully, though hopelessly. The hawk, sometimes with that characteristic steely stare into the middle distance and sometimes looking down at its prey, held the sparrow in an equally steely grip – and thrust it rhythmically against the ground with a kind of pumping action. In humans, it would have been as if life-saving CPR was being performed on a patient to re-start a heart. Here it was the opposite and, after a short time, the sparrow lay still. Satisfied that its work was done – and with only one tiny feather out of place – the hawk flew off with its prey. We have a lot of house sparrows in our garden, though one fewer now. It makes us wonder about the merits of feeding them as we do, but we then remember that we also provided the means for a skilled hunter to feed its own family. It was a unique encounter, lasting about 30 seconds and so close to our house in an Edinburgh suburb – and a reminder to have the camera close at hand at all times! Mike Williamson, Edinburgh Equipment: Taken through the kitchen window on 15 May 2018 with Fujifilm X-T2 mirrorless camera. 55-200mm lens (taken at 200mm), ISO 800, 1/240 sec, f5.6

August 2018