Species of the day: Sparrowhawk
James Duncan
Learning and Engagement Officer
The rather majestic Sparrowhawk (Accipiter nisus) is now a fairly regular sight across Britain, surprising for a bird that's typically a shy, secretive hunter of mixed woodland. The simple reason for this is of course its role as urban assassin of garden birds, a niche successfully exploited for many years. Though some may now see them as unwelcome garden invaders, the Sparrowhawk has suffered tremendously at the hands of man, their decline so dramatic following World War Two that a British extinction within the 1960s loomed as a real possibility. This of course resulted from the catastrophic ecological effects of extensive organochlorine pesticides like Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT), which accumulated and lingered in the food chain, thinning egg shells and increasing overall mortality. This truly pushed them to the brink and it took wide-scale pesticide bans to increase and stabilise their national population - fortunately they largely recovered by the 1990s.
There can be few birds, other than the mighty Goshawk (Accipiter gentilis), that portray a more spellbinding intensity, exhibiting a tension and scowling look that's enough to provoke abject fear in any small bird unfortunate enough to remain in their vicinity. They may appear ferocious but conversely, as a bird of prey, they're really quite fragile, something already witnessed through those enormous past declines. Birds of prey have a tough living, particularly as human behaviour and persecution make them more vulnerable and target them more than almost any other species group. Though the Sparrowhawk is Britain's third most numerous raptor, their population of approximately 35,000 pairs is, by contrast, equivalent to only around 1% the national number of Blue Tits. It may seem logical to consider that Sparrowhawk's control the number of prey species, but this is entirely incorrect for it is in fact the numbers of their favoured prey that regulate Sparrowhawk numbers, a self-sustaining ecological balance.
Watching a Sparrowhawk is truly captivating. Their woodland heritage gifts them simply superb abilities in flight, for they're one of our mightiest aerial ambush predators. Relying on the element of surprise, they'll weave with pinpoint precision through all manner of obstacles, darting between washing lines and diving over hedges, sticking close to cover in order to avoid detection, striking prey before it's even seen it coming. You may be driving one day and witness one flying fast, close to the ground in front of your car, behaving more like an Exocet missile than a bird. Funnily enough, thick and densely vegetated hedgerows won't always offer salvation to passerine birds for a Sparrowhawk may simply dive straight in and emerge victorious. They display some of the greatest sexual dimorphism amongst birds, the female around 25% larger and sometimes double the weight of the male. Between the sexes, they may predate more than a hundred different bird species and contrary to their name, show no preference for sparrows.
When prey is captured a Sparrowhawk will be loathe to give it up, unsurprising considering the energy expended during the hunting process. If this happens to be in an urban setting, you may well see one mantling, shrouding its wings around the prey in order to conceal it from larger predators. Though it may display little fear, perhaps even disdain, it's a supremely vulnerable state for they often fall prey to larger predators themselves. Though we're used to watching predator and prey on television, the Sparrowhawk often brings this relationship right into our front rooms, the key factor for why it's still viewed controversially. It's the human response to their prey, 'our garden birds' that creates a division of opposing public opinion like no other raptor. Ultimately, long-term research collated from many thousands of records of breeding songbirds suggests no link between their declining numbers and Sparrowhawk populations. The natural balance indicates that songbird numbers are similar both where Hawks are present and where they aren't.
Sparrowhawk © Neil Fletcher
Comments
We had a sparrowhawk on our garden fence this morning 28.8.20 in Portslade BN41 2ER. Needless to say the usually plentiful sparrows disappeared a bit sharpish. This is the first one I’ve spotted around here. We had a Merlin a few months ago nearby too.
28 Aug 2020 11:23:00
We heard a raptor screeching in our garden at BN41 2HT in Portslade today, 27th November 2020. Sure enough, it was displaying ‘mantling’ behaviour on the ground in our garden. The prey was a Starling. I had plenty of time to get some pictures with my DSLR, and these pictures can be made available if anyone is interested. Cheers, Graeme
27 Nov 2020 17:14:00
Think I had a sparrow hawk on my garden fence 9/4/ 2021 at 7. 15 pm in Crawley
09 Apr 2021 18:16:00
Beautiful Sparrowhawk in the woodland TPO behind Longhill Road, Ovingdean, BN2 7BE. It was very high and swinging from left to right across a rookery and magpie nest. The crows assembled and chased it off quickly. Safety in numbers. First time I’ve seen one here. Get Buzzards, Red Kites, kestrels and Barn owls as frequent visitors.
26 Apr 2021 16:43:00
We had a sparrowhawk in our front garden today at 1.30pm in Bexhill on Sea. It had caught a pigeon and was on top of it on the ground. I went to the window as heard an awful noise and was stunned to see a sparrowhawk. The seagulls were all flying above making a racket. The pigeon got away and hid in our bushes out of sight for a few hours.
02 Jan 2022 21:56:00
I feed my birds everyday and started with, two wood doos and starlings, house sparrows and a Robin. Then 4 years ago I got a couple of doves and some crows & jackdaws and carrier crows. Now I have 12 doves every day wakening me up at 07.30 along with the rest of my birds! Strangely this morning they all flew away (scared) ? And I heard a strange squeaking noise outside and when I looked outside my patio there was a Sparrow hawk on top of a crow anthe noise was deafening, I went out to stop it killing the crow I was only 2 foot away before the hawk released it and they both flew away, by this time there must have been at least 2-3 hundred crows flying above . Is this normal?
25 Feb 2022 21:45:07
My wife watched a sparrowhawk take out a pigeon in our back garden in Tunbridge Wells on 9/4/22. After the kill the hawk flew to the top of a hedge and watched my wife and I try and work out what had happened before it flew down a picked up the pigeon right in front of me, taking it off down the garden to pluck it and eat it’s fill. The hawk then flew off with the remains of the bird. It was breathtaking and fantastic to see.
18 Apr 2022 04:45:00
02/12/22 Fabulous yet sad to see a Sparrow Hawk take a starling and partially devour it before flying off with the remains, I guess if you put dinner on the plate it will be noticed! spectacular photos and a video on my smart phone. I feel privileged to have witness this magnificent hunt and its result.
02 Dec 2022 10:21:00
Sparrow hawk by our front door yesterday with a crow in its claws. Fortunately for crow, when bird saw me he gave up on crow and both flew off
06 Jan 2023 16:07:00
Had a sparrowhawk take a sparrow this morning 15/3/23, had 4 doves in the garden at the time feeding, but they escaped, all quiet now, unsurprisingly.
15 Mar 2023 11:40:00
Had a sparrowhawk take a sparrowhawk this morning, 15/3/23
Looked up the Internet as was quite a size, learned it was a large female as was brown in colour,
Still quiet in the garden 4 hrs later, birds scared off.
Eastbourne Bn22
Eastbourne
15 Mar 2023 13:06:00
Male Sparrow hawk spotted in Heathfield near Sandy Cross today 9 April 23, second time he’s been in our garden in the past week.
09 Apr 2023 11:00:00
We have a pair of sparrow hawks nesting in a tall pine tree in our garden this Summer. They’ve already had one set of chicks which fledged and now they’re in to the second set. The noise is incredible; constant screeching, as they seem to be having lessons how to fly and hunt. We’ve really noticed that all the other birds that normally inhabit our garden have gone very quiet/ moved on. Our little dog is scared to go outside!
04 Aug 2023 12:37:00
Eastbourne
East Sussex
Had a sparrowhawk in the tree next door , I wondered why I had some sparrows in the greenhouse that wouldn’t come out, nice to see, flew off as soon as I went into the garden to look at sparrows in the greenhouse, sparrows flew off when I left them.
30 Aug 2023 17:05:00
We have a female hunting around our semi rural area in Lancashire. It has taken two pigeons in our garden in the last week. It does seem to be landing it’s prey into a door or fence. I left her to devour most of her prey at our backdoor. We know have feathers everywhere. They are no worse than domestic cats for killing birds. The pigeons sat on our roof this morning better have their wits about them. 05/03/2024.
06 Mar 2024 09:51:00
Had a sparrow hawk dive into the bushes/trees at the back of our garden today 04/04/2024. 1700. Ludlow Shropshire. Have an awful list of finches, tits and robins nest in the overgrowth. Just hope he can back out empty handed. Happened just after we filled up the bird feeders. It was like he knew the garden would be swamped with small birds at that time
04 Apr 2024 16:53:00
Saw a sparrowhawk at work yesterday sitting on the shed roof. Earlier in the day a pair was seen sitting in the same place. It over looks a crop field with plenty of hedgerows nearby.
30 Apr 2024 20:14:00
We saw a sparrowhawk on our shed roof at work on 26/04/24 at 14.17 in East Wittering PO20. The shed overlooks a crop field with plenty of hedgerows around. Earlier in the morning there was a pair sitting in the same place. Remnants of a small bird were seen on the shed roof earlier in the week.
30 Apr 2024 20:24:00
I have seen a pair of sparrowhawks this week, hunting in my forest, near to Crowborough.
11 Jul 2024 19:25:00
Sparrow Hawk in the garden at 5pm 8th Aug 2024, London NW7 4JU.
Perched for 2 or 3 minutes on a eucalyptus branch.
Had a chance to take a few photos and videos.
08 Aug 2024 17:00:00
Sussex Wildlife Trust:
Great.
I’ve just had a sparrowhawk perch on our patio rail. Tried to get a photo too late unfortunately. Took off down the river. Shoreham-By-Sea, BN43 5BH 24 Aug 24.
24 Aug 2024 13:14:00
Saw one perched intently on our garden gate in Pevensey Bay yesterday, lovely moment.
28 Jul 2025 05:09:00
I think we’ve had a breeding pair in the huge trees at the back of our house, which now have at least one fledgling.
25 Aug 2025 16:30:00
In Hassocks, this morning I saw a sparrowhawk land in the road with a pigeon underneath it. Because of the cars the hawk flew off without its catch. The pigeon looked disorientated but also flew out of the road.
23 Oct 2025 19:00:00
I have just spotted a sparrowhawk sitting in our front garden – no sparrows on the bird feeder this afternoon! BN1 5PS
05 Nov 2025 14:50:00
There was a beautiful sparrow Hawk sitting on my garden fence right outside my window
He sat there for ages giving me loads of time to have a good look at him It was so beautifull iv never seen one so close up before It was fantastic
14 Nov 2025 16:38:00
Had a sparrowhawk on my garden archway by the birdfeeder.
15th feb 2026
15 Feb 2026 09:36:00
Watched a sparrowhawk with prey, small bird possible sparrow in my back garden at Pevensey Bay.just off the beach. Just off the beach.
05 Mar 2026 09:36:00
I had a Sparrowhawk on my garden gate this morning. I quietly moved nearer without disturbing it. zI checked after an hour and it had gone. We have a colony of more than 20 sparrows in hedges nearby. Location Emsworth
23 Mar 2026 22:13:00