How to feed a domestic hawk chick. Description and habits of the sparrowhawk. What does a hawk eat?

Have you ever seen how crows or small birds chase a small bird of prey in the air, which is noticeably smaller in size to the crows following it on the heels?

At such encounters, most often the predator forced to flee turns out to be a sparrowhawk. This small hawk often appears, especially in autumn, during the nomadic period, even in large cities. It is easy to recognize it by its small size, slender body, long tail widened towards the end and short wide wings.

The light chest and belly of adult birds are covered with narrow transverse stripes. The length of the males is about 33 cm, the wingspan is about 63 cm, the body weight is 150 g. The female is slightly larger, respectively 39 cm. 74 cm and weight 250 g.

In behavior, methods of obtaining and eating food, the sparrowhawk has much in common with the goshawk. This hawk is a pronounced ornithophage, and birds make up the lion's share of its prey. Only if the goshawk mainly catches birds of medium size, weighing 300-500 g, then the sparrowhaw catches mainly small birds, the size of a sparrow or a little more. Much less often, larger birds become its victims.

The largest prey that the female of this predator once managed to overcome was the pheasant and the mallard duck - birds 4 times larger than the hawk! It is believed that only females attack larger birds, but I was able to see how a small male sparrowhawk boldly pursued a rock pigeon, which was twice his size. And although that time the pigeon managed to break away from the pursuer, going up in circles, there is no doubt that if he had been overtaken, the hawk would have overcome him.

But the lapwing was not lucky. I once saw how a male sparrowhawk jumped from above on this large sandpiper, weighing about 200 g, and, seizing it, sank down near a boggy bush. And when two hours later I went to check how much meat this little predator can eat, and what was left of the lapwing, I saw that the hawk dragged its prey into the forest, to which it was at least 150 m in a straight line.

The path of the bird flying with the prey was indicated by feathers dropped by the lapwing from time to time. This happened in early May, probably, the first eggs appeared in the nest of the sparrowhawks, and the female was already incubating them, otherwise the hawk would not have carried such a large prey so far.

The sparrowhawk hunts, flying low above the ground and, deftly maneuvering between bushes and trees, rushes to the victim, suddenly appearing above it. Sometimes it hides in thickets and waits for potential prey to appear nearby. In a word, he takes every opportunity to rush to the victim.

Most often, small birds, the most numerous in the area, suffer from the sparrowhawk. Sometimes this predator, as it were, grazes a flock of birds, regularly appearing where they feed or rest. One autumn, and it was in the Tver region, large flocks of starlings and barn swallows began to gather in the coastal thickets of reeds for the night.

Soon sparrowhawks appeared here, and every evening they began to take bloody rent from these flocks. The predators waited for the whole flock to sit in the reeds, flew into the thickets and almost immediately returned, carrying another victim in their claws. At the same time, they did not even create a big commotion in the flock.

According to observations on Pechora, during the spring migration of birds, the local sparrowhawks first fed almost exclusively on snow buntings, which was clearly visible from the piles of feathers of the eaten birds. And when the flocks of snow buntings flew farther north, the predators switched to horned larks, the migratory flocks of which appeared here a little later.

One can only be surprised to see how the hawk deftly grabs the sparrows, sometimes a few steps from the passengers waiting for the bus.

Hawks tend to pluck their prey before they have killed it, and I was convinced of this more than once. Once I saw how a sparrowhawk deftly grabbed a flying magpie and immediately descended with it behind a scattering of stones. Soon, feathers torn out by the predator flew from behind the stones. After waiting about fifteen minutes, I decided to get closer and see how the predator was feasting, but the cautious hawk, either hearing or seeing me, threw the prey and darted to the side.

The magpie also took off and, having flown quite a bit, sank into the bush. She looked thoroughly battered, and there was blood on her head. And in the place from which the birds just flew away, there are many black and white magpie feathers.

Somehow long before this incident, I caught a field thrush in the forest, which was almost completely plucked. He could not fly, because there were no feathers left in the wings, the tail was also ripped out. He looked like a plucked chicken from a store, but he was alive and galloped quite briskly.

On the bluish body were the dark marks left by the beak of a hawk. Apparently, someone scared the hawk off when he had almost completely finished plucking the thrush.

At the place of eating prey, the sparrowhawk leaves characteristic traces similar to those that can be seen in places where goshaws eat, but only on a reduced scale, in the form of a compact pile of feathers from all parts of the bird's body. Sparrowhawk loves to pinch and eat prey, sitting on some perch, trunk or stump, less often it pinches birds right on the ground or snow.

The imprint of the left paw of a sparrowhawk in the snow and the lower surface of the paw of a male

Usually you notice piles of plucked feathers quite far away. Small birds, such as tap dancers, are eaten, plucking practically without residue, from larger birds, such as crossbills, sometimes it leaves a stomach or a leg, but most often a beak and the front of the skull.

Like the goshawk, a white strip of droppings, about 7 × 2.5 cm in area, can often be seen aside from the victim's feathers. The larger the eaten bird, the more bone remains at the site of the feathered predator's feast.

Thrushes quite often fall prey to hawks - both the goshawk and the sparrowhawk. But if after a goshawk in a bunch of blackbirds feathers you can at best find a beak or a leg, then at the place where the sparrowhawk feasted, you often find the front part of the head, paws, bones of the shoulder girdle with a damaged beak of a predator's keel, and other fragments of bones with remnants half-eaten meat on them.

The food requirement of this hawk is 80-120 g per day, i.e. 2-3 birds the size of a sparrow for the male and 3-4 for the female. Eating enough, the hawk pecks the meat off the bones less cleanly. Sparrowhawk pellets are rarely found. But still, sometimes you find them near the remains of eaten prey. The average size of the pellet is 3.6 x 1.8 cm. They contain small feathers of small birds, sometimes scraps of wool and bones.

Occasionally the sparrowhawk catches mice and voles; there is a known case of its attack on a gopher. At the site of eating a small rodent, small pieces of plucked wool remain. Despite the fact that the sparrowhawk sometimes eats its prey right in the snow, it is rare to see clear paw prints of this predator. Unlike the goshawk and some other birds of prey, he does not like to walk on the ground. He only sits down to grab prey or eat it while sitting in one place. The size of the sparrowhawk paw print is b, 7 × 3.4 cm in the male and somewhat larger in the female. The width of a pair of legs of a bird sitting in the snow is about 11 cm.

Sparrowhawk nests most often on conifers, building a small nest near the trunk itself on a branch extending from it. The nest is located approximately at a height of half a tree. At the end of the nesting period or shortly after the chicks leave, near the nest and on the branches, you can see rare white fluffs of chicks. Under the nest, at a distance of up to 3 m from the trunk, the grass and soil are splashed with hawk droppings, but I did not find any food remnants or pellets under any of the nests. But away from the nests, it is sometimes possible to find places where adult birds plucked prey before feeding it to their chicks. Sparrowhawks bring food, holding it in their paws.

Hunting for various birds and animals, sparrowhawks sometimes become victims of predators themselves. I found the remains of a sparrowhawk, eaten by a goshawk, and the chewed wings of a hawk caught by a marten. Apparently, the marten was catching birds sleeping in the trees at night.

Is a relatively small feathered predator. Hawks nesting in Central and Southern Europe stay at home for the winter. Those who live on the northern edge of the continent fly to South Africa for the winter.

The unpretentious sparrowhawk finds refuge in various places. It can be found both in the valleys and high in the mountains (up to the upper border of the forest), but most often it settles down to live in groves and forest edges next to fields, meadows, gardens and rural estates, choosing a young coniferous stand for the nest. Sometimes hawks settle in deciduous groves overgrown with bushes along the edges of fields, as well as in vast city parks and wooded areas.

Habitat. All of Europe with the exception of Iceland and the northern tip of Scandinavia, as well as Asia and North Africa.

Species: Sparrowhawk - Accipiter nisus.
Family: Hawk.
Order: Daytime birds of prey.
Class: Birds.
Subtype: Vertebrates.

Security.
Mass use of plant protection products in the 60s. led to a catastrophic decline in the number of sparrowhawks. After the ban on the use of the most toxic herbicides was introduced in Central Europe, the population of these predators has grown significantly. In some European countries, the Sparrowhawk is protected by law.

Reproduction.
Sparrowhawks are among the birds that bring only one brood per year. Each year, the couple builds a new nest on a young tree, choosing a place where branches grow together with the trunk. In the midst of mating games, the birds echo with a characteristic crying scream. In late April - early May, the female lays 4-6 white eggs in a brown speck. A few days before the laying of the first egg, the male begins to feed his spouse and diligently supplies her with food for the entire period of incubation. The female allows herself to leave the nest for only a couple of minutes and goes to the “kitchen”, where she receives neatly plucked prey from the male. After 33-36 days, chicks covered with white fluff hatch from the eggs, which remain in the nest for about a month. All this time, the female is inseparably with the babies - she warms them up, covers them from the sun and rain, and in case of danger she bravely protects them from the enemy. In the first days of the chicks' life, the father brings already plucked prey to the nest and gives it to the mother, who shares the offering and feeds the chicks. As soon as the babies grow up a little, the male begins to transfer prey to his friend on the fly, without approaching the nest. If during this period a misfortune happens to the mother, the young will inevitably die of hunger, since the father will be able to get plenty of game, but will not be able to feed the chicks. Two weeks after the appearance of the chick, the female also flies out to hunt. From this moment, the parents no longer tear apart the prey, but throw it entirely into the nest, leaving the chicks to deal with it on their own. On the 35th day, grown-up children already fly up to their parents when they bring food.

Lifestyle.
The main prey of the sparrowhawk is small birdies: sparrows, finches, larks, titmouses and blackbirds, although sparrowhawk females sometimes attack pigeons. It is very difficult to see a predator in time, because he likes to attack from an ambush, but when he sees an enemy, small birds immediately raise an alarming hubbub and rush scatteringly. Having spotted the victim, the sparrowhawk breaks down from the sheltered perch and rushes to the target on low level flight. In pursuit of prey, the hawk is mobile and agile, as befits an air ace. The attack is usually short-lived, because maneuvering flight requires a huge expenditure of energy. If the prey escapes the first blow, the hawk loses interest in it and again hides in a shelter, and in case of a successful hunt, it takes the victim to a secluded corner, where, before eating it, it methodically plucks it. The propensity for aerial "recklessness" often turns out to be fatal for the sparrowhawk, especially during the wintering period in the city. Carried away by the chase, hawks often crash into wires or break on window panes. It is possible to track a sparrowhawk in flight only for a tiny fraction of a second.

Did you know?

• The sparrow plays an important role in the regulation of populations of urban and field sparrows.
• In the past, it was believed that the cuckoo turns into a hawk for the winter. Since all cuckoos fly to winter in Africa, hawks wintering in Europe were often mistaken for cuckoos because of their similar color.
• Sometimes the hawk attacks the birds in the cage standing on the windowsill, without seeing the window glass. Since the predator rushes into battle without looking back, such an attack often ends in his death.
• From 50 to 70% of young sparrowhawks die in the first year of life, becoming victims of winter frosts and injuries. Many fall prey to large hawks.
• During the incubation of the clutch, the female completely replaces the plumage. Males, who have to feed the family, molt later and gradually replace the flight feathers.

Sparrowhawk - Accipiter nisus.
Length: 30-40 cm.
Weight: 150-300 g.
Wingspan: 60-80 cm.
Number of eggs in a clutch: 4-6.
Incubation period: 33-36 days.
Food: mainly birds of the passerine order.
Life expectancy: up to 15 years.

Structure.
Plumage. The ventral side is whitish with brown transverse stripes. In an adult male, the back is gray-gray, the stripes on the abdomen are buffy. In the female, the dorsal side is brown, and the stripes on the abdomen are darker.
Wings. The wings are rather short and wide, with rounded ends.
Eyes. The iris of the eyes is orange-yellow. Excellent vision allows the hawk to look out for prey from afar.
Tail. The tail is long, cut at right angles.
Beak. Sharp yellow beak is crocheted and well adapted to plucking and tearing the body of prey.
Paws. Tarsus of long yellow paws are covered with feathers. The fingers are armed with sharp claws.

Related species.
The hawk family includes hawks. Buzzards, kites and vultures of the Old World (Europe, Asia and Africa), as well as eagles, harriers, osprey and hawks. This is the most numerous family of feathered predators. There are 50 species of hawks living in forests and copses around the world.

A small, swift and very maneuverable sparrowhawk, or small hawk, is highly valued by hunters, because a competently trained bird, according to Abkhaz hunters, is capable of catching up to hundreds of quails or partridges a day! From the point of view of ornithology, the small hawk is of interest as a typical representative of the hawk-like order with all the habits inherent in a real predator.

Sparrowhawk in the sky.

And for a photographer, this bird is a real challenge, because it is extremely difficult to catch it by surprise, and high-quality photos of a sparrowhawk can become an adornment of any collection.

What does a sparrowhawk look like?

The sparrowhawk, aka the small hawk, belongs to the genus of real hawks. However, you should not confuse it with other sparrowhawks, for example, small, spotted, African small or wine-breasted. Despite the common word "sparrowhawk", these birds are completely different in appearance.

In appearance, the sparrowhawk is similar to its relative - the goshawk, but it is 1.5 times smaller than it. Like many hawks, female sparrowhawks are a quarter larger and heavier than males. The growth of an adult female is 35-41 cm, body weight reaches 186-345 g. Males are the size of a pigeon, grow up to 29-34 cm in length with a weight of about 100-200 g. Larger and stronger females are used as hunting birds.

Sparrowhawks are light, graceful birds with a neat rounded head, slender legs, slender tarsus and long toes. Their wings are short and wide, and the tail, on the contrary, is long, but not rounded, but as straight cut.

The backs of the males are slate gray, the females are grayish brown above. The lower part of the body of birds is speckled with rusty-brown transverse streaks forming ripples: large in females, smaller in males.

The wings of sparrowhawks are monochromatic dark gray on top, in a transverse strip below. The undertail is white, the top of the tail is gray with clearly visible four transverse bands. The legs and toes of birds are yellow, with sharp black claws.

The eyes of predators are yellow; in males, they are orange. The beak is bluish, the beak is bright yellow. Above the eye of the sparrowhawk, a white eyebrow is clearly visible, much narrower than that of the goshawk, therefore the small hawk's gaze is not so piercing and stern.

Young birds are distinguished by the brownish plumage of the back, very large waviness on the lower body and the pale yellow color of the iris.

Within the range of the sparrowhawk, another relative similar to it lives - the European tyvik, also known as the short-legged hawk. However, it lacks white eyebrows and, as the name suggests, has shorter legs.

Rubbing a sparrowhawk.

Sparrowhawk in flight.

Sparrowhawk on a branch with the remains of prey.

Rubbing a sparrowhawk.

Where does the sparrowhawk live?

Lesser hawk is one of the most common predators of the Old World, widespread in the temperate and subtropical zone of Eurasia. From north to south, the range of the Sparrowhawk stretches from the tundra to the Mediterranean Sea, the extreme western point is the Canary Islands, in the east, birds live as far as Kamchatka.

Birds from the northern regions winter in Asia and North Africa, the rest of the population are sedentary. Depending on the habitat, scientists have described 6 subspecies of the sparrowhawk. The smallest lives in the northwest of the African continent.

The favorite biotopes of the sparrowhawk are forests, but not dense thickets, but edges, forest-steppe and river floodplains. In the open area - in the steppes and semi-deserts, the predator is found on migrations, in the mountains it rises up to 5 thousand m above sea level.

Small hawk can be found near agricultural land, on the outskirts of settlements; predators' nests are sometimes found in city parks.

The main condition for habitat and nesting is a good food base.

Sparrowhawk is swimming.

Sparrowhawk is swimming.

Sparrowhawk in flight.

Sparrowhawk in flight.

Rubbing a sparrowhawk.

What does the sparrowhawk eat?

The favorite food of the small hawk is small and medium-sized birds. Its modest size does not allow the sparrowhawk to hunt big game, but observers say that a brave predator can attack even a pheasant that is 2 times larger than it!

The diet is based on numerous passerines, including crows, as well as waders, plovers, hazel grouses, partridges, pigeons and other bird species.

A sparrowhawk attacked a pigeon.

Sparrowhawk in the snow with prey.

Sparrowhawk after dinner.

Sparrowhawk hunts from an ambush or looks out for prey from a height. The flight of the predator is light and smooth; it can hover for a rather long time, alternating between flapping wings and soft gliding. The sparrowhawk looks very beautiful in the photo with its tail open as a fan.

The search flight of a small hawk passes low above the ground and, having noticed a potential prey, the predator shows miracles of maneuverability inherent in hawks. Rapid flight along a flexible trajectory is provided by short bent wings and a long tail.

Dexterously avoiding obstacles, the Sparrowhawk overtakes its prey, plunging sharp long claws into the bird's body. The predator plucks and eats the caught game from the head. The prey male is limited to the bird's head, and the rest is carried to the nest.

If the sparrowhawks ate exclusively their own kind, they would have long been considered pests and systematically exterminated. The Lesser Hawk does kill many beneficial birds, but at the same time kills the weak and the sick.

In early spring, when rodents appear in abundance from flooded burrows, the sparrowhawk performs the honorable mission of a field attendant, willingly eating voles. In the south of the range, predators do not refuse to feast on large insects - pests, therefore, in general, they do not cause serious damage to bird populations.

A dexterous and indefatigable hunter, the sparrowhawk is usually silent, and only during the mating season can you hear his quick cries of "q-q" and "kick-kick-kick".

Breeding features

The Lesser Hawk is a monogamous bird. On the nesting sites, pairs appear only in April, and new nests are built every year. The nesting place of a pair of sparrowhawks can be easily identified by several nests located close to tree trunks and bird bones scattered on the ground.

Unlike the goshawk, small hawks never use fresh shoots for construction, but build a nest from dry twigs of coniferous trees and dead grass.

The nest, 38-40 cm in diameter and height, looks like a randomly thrown bunch of branches. The female lines the tray with needles, mosses, animal hair, and can pluck feathers from her belly.

In May - early June, the female lays from 4 to 6 white dull eggs with brownish-rusty spots and specks. Incubates very densely, for 32 days, feeds on the food brought by the male.

In a deep nest, the female sparrowhawk is practically invisible. You can determine which nest is inhabited by knocking on the trunk, the disturbed female is immediately removed, but quickly returns.

Chicks are born covered with white fluff with a beige tint. At first, the male continues to feed the female and brood. Sometimes he brings an already plucked bird or the female does it, and then feeds the chicks, tearing off a piece from the prey.

When the chicks get stronger, the female also begins to hunt, and after 1-1.5 months the young sparrowhawks can already fly.

Sparrowhawk nest with chicks.

Sparrowhawk nest with grown chicks.

Experienced hunters of the peoples of the East often get chicks out of the nest while they have not yet acquired the ability to fly. The males are then released, and the females are tamed, trained and kept as hunting birds. Others lure adult sparrowhawks into traps, predators are also successfully trained and used to hunt partridges, quails and waders.

In the middle of the last century, due to the widespread use of pesticides, the survival of the small hawk was threatened. For more than 50 years, the number of the species has recovered and today the bird population is not threatened. Sparrowhaws live at least 12 years under favorable conditions.

Caring for birds of prey

Hawks, falcons and owls. The authors of the book have been nursing birds of prey for a long time. These birds are capable of long-term affection. But this attachment is fraught with considerable danger, because, once free, birds can become easy prey for a hunter.

Birds of prey play an important role in nature, but nevertheless often fall prey to human ignorance. Fortunately, in some places they have already understood what the imbalance in nature, resulting from the ill-considered extermination of birds of prey, leads to. A number of countries have passed laws on their protection. As a matter of fact, protection laws currently apply to all birds. But more needs to be done. It is necessary to explain to people the role of predators in nature. It is necessary to develop legislation that prohibits the capture of these animals for subsequent resale.

But let us return to the peculiarities of the temporary care and maintenance of birds of prey not as captives, but as patients. Nutrition in this case is not difficult at all. It may be necessary to perform several force-feeding sessions until the bird is accustomed to the new diet. But, as a rule, the predator very quickly adapts, receiving food from meat, mice, rats or chicken heads. Keep in mind that feathers and fur are a vital nutrient in their natural environment. For owls, milk given to them using a medical pipette is a real treat. Sometimes crushed animals and birds come across on the highways. We put them in special boxes, thus creating food supplies for our pets. Remember to keep beef lean and refrigerate. Although preferred, it can be replaced with horse meat on occasion. Food is best served from a stick 5-10 cm long. When force-feeding hawks and owls, the meat must be placed on the tip of the stick and pressed firmly against the bird's beak. At the moment when the beak opens, you need to insert the meat into your mouth and gently turn the stick. The meat will get deep enough into the mouth of the bird, and if you push it slightly, the bird will definitely swallow. But you need to act carefully so as not to scratch the back of the pharynx. From personal experience, we were convinced that after several forced feedings, the bird itself begins to grab food from the stick, as soon as it is brought to the beak. It is necessary to return to this method only in those cases when the bird is clearly sick or frightened so much that it is not able to eat normally. Sometimes we practiced hand feeding, but a bird of prey can walk on the hand with its claws.

Quite often during feeding we resorted to using a wooden spoon. Its length is quite sufficient in order to completely protect your hands. In no case should you use metal objects - they can easily injure the bird's beak.

The meat should be chopped into small single portions, the size of which depends on the size of the bird. There is no need to limit the bird in food, give it as much as it wants - more than it needs, it still will not eat. For example, a red-tailed buzzard can receive two full cups of meat a day: once in the morning, once in the evening. Vitamin and bone foods should be included in the daily diet.

If an adult bird is not injured and does not need hand feeding, place food on a clean plank and allow the bird to come up and feed on its own. If she is injured, place the food on the perch behind her. It is interesting that the hawks, grabbing the food, carry it to the corner of the cage and there they fuss over it, flapping their wings and making a slight protesting noise, which, apparently, should scare off a possible competitor who wants to encroach on someone else's delicacy.

Kestrels prefer crickets and grasshoppers over mice, which are required by larger birds. Catch more grasshoppers and freeze them.

The osprey is a fish-eating bird, but it will not refuse a piece of beef (albeit for a short time). By the way, do not forget to put a spacious tank with fresh water for swimming for this bird.

To train little owls to hunt on their own, place a light near the cage and turn it on in the evenings. Flying insects will be excellent prey for owls and nightjars.

Large hawk - red-tailed and broad-winged buzzards and falcons defecate in a completely different way from small songbirds. They do not drip droppings down under them, but leaning forward, lift. tail feathers and literally "shoot", hitting all corners outside the cage. Therefore, it is recommended to wrap the part of the cage in which the perch is located with cloth, trying to close the side between the ceiling and the bottom. As a rule, all birds, if given a sufficiently large cage, choose their roost in one specific place.

Predators should never be kept in small cages. They need space to move, otherwise they will start banging against the walls of the cage, they can break feathers. Bird dwellings should be well protected on three sides and have a roof to keep out drafts as birds are prone to pneumonia. Light should also be limited, especially for night owls. The first rays of dawn affect owls most unpleasantly. They temporarily blind the birds and it is not surprising that, returning from a night hunt, they come across various objects and obstacles. Collisions with telephone and electrical wires are a common cause of injury to these large birds of prey.

Quite often in the pet store, we saw how birds of prey are kept in cages that are clearly small, even in order to spread their wings. One such bird was on display - forced to perch from a railroad rail, its legs tied with rawhide straps. The slightest attempt to free the limbs led to the fact that the straps were tightened even tighter. It is not surprising that after such treatment the bird found itself in a deplorable state and had to tinker a lot with it before being released into the wild, because the forced immobility for many weeks led to the fact that the bird could hardly fly.

The perch should be large enough for the bird to sit comfortably on it, gripping it tightly with its fingers. It is best to use solid tree branches for these purposes, on which the bird will sharpen its beak and claws. It is not recommended to fix sandpaper on the perches - it can damage the legs of the predator.

While in captivity, the bird, especially when it is alarmed, often flexes its limbs and spreads its claws for self-defense. Anyone with common sense will agree that these claws look quite intimidating. They are tough and sharp enough to tear the meat down to the bone. During the battle, the bird does not use its beak, it has enough claws. You can, outposting a bird in a complacent mood, try to take it without gloves, but still we advise you to refrain from dangerous experiments. The predator willingly jumps onto a gloved hand if it is gently taken from behind by the tarsus just above the fingers.

Be careful not to put different species of birds in the same cage: they can severely injure each other. Birds often coexist quite peacefully side by side in the wild, but this in no way applies to their neighborhood in the same cage. A crow, a hawk, an owl will surely injure or even kill a less warlike bird that they come across, which is not able to properly fend for itself. Never place in the same cage with a bird of prey another bird or animal that is his usual object of hunting. We also do not recommend keeping two male hawks or owls in the same cage.

It is best to release birds of prey where hunting is prohibited. The bird will certainly be able to feed itself, and even if it flies away from this place, the skills it has learned in the wild will remain strong enough to protect itself. It is necessary to release birds into the wild on a clear fine day, so that they do not immediately have to fight the elements. Naturally, fishermen should be released where there is a reservoir with fish. An open meadow is a great place for kestrels, where crickets, grasshoppers and field mice, etc., are abundant.

Hickman M., Guy M. Care of wild birds and fur-bearing.- M .: Lesn. prom-st. - 87 p.

A beautiful, majestic, bird of prey - a hawk. Our ancestors noted how the hawk hunts quickly, dexterously and gracefully. The bird of the falconry order has more than 40 species, one of which is the sparrowhawk.

The appearance and distinctive features of sparrowhawks

Sparrowhawk females are larger than males. The wings of these birds are short and slightly rounded, very wide. A long, narrowed tail at the very base, has a shape very similar to a square at the end. Long legs, yellow. In males, the backs are painted gray-gray, in females in brown-gray. The underside of males is light, with brownish-red or brown stripes; females have white underparts with gray stripes. By the way, young birds are at first very similar to females, but they have not such a striped belly, and the wings have a slightly noticeable bloom of gray.

The eyes of young birds are pale yellow, in adult birds they are orange, and in the oldest birds the color of the eyes is close to orange-red. Also, the cheeks of these birds have a red color. The beak is gray-blue. The tail usually has 3 to five stripes. The body length of the male is approximately 28 centimeters, the female is 40 centimeters. The weight of an adult male is about 150 grams, of a female - 350 grams.

Sparrowhawk habitat

Sparrowhawks live mainly in woodlands, both in coniferous and deciduous forests. There should be an open body of water not far from the place of residence. Hawks are very fond of open space. In the very cold season, you can often find a sparrowhawk in the village.

Sparrowhawk lifestyle and hunting

Sparrowhawk hunts mainly during the day, in large open areas. Several individuals hunt in one area, but they do it at different times of the day. Sometimes sparrowhawks can stalk their prey on the ground. If they attack from the air, they fall on the prey like a stone downward, completely folding their wings. If necessary, the hawk flips in flight so that it can grab its prey from below. On the day of an adult, about 2-3 small birds are needed until full saturation. The Sparrowhawk spends the lion's share of its time sitting motionless in its shelter.

Sparrowhawk food

Even a hare is "in the teeth" for a female sparrowhawk

A huge part, more than 90% of the total diet of the sparrowhawks are birds. These are mainly small species such as tits, sparrows, warblers, crossbills, partridges. Small mammals such as bats are also included in the diet. Sometimes they can be insects. The hawk is not averse to feasting on small rodents: or rabbits. Females most often hunt for larger prey, and males for the smaller one.

Reproduction and breeding of offspring in a sparrowhawk

This type of bird is monogamous, the couple creates its own nest, and protects it together. Sparrowhawks prefer to build nests in the same area, but each year they move a little from the old place. The nest can be up to 50 centimeters in diameter and up to 40 centimeters in height. Nests curl without lining, loose and not very strong. Both parents get food for the offspring, but only the female herself always incubates the eggs. Until the chicks are at least 2 weeks old, the female will not leave her nest. The active breeding season is from April to June, when there is a lot of prey.

Newborn chicks resemble small white balls. In order to properly feed the offspring, parents must bring at least 8 small birds per day. The female very actively protects her offspring when a person approaches. She begins to circle around the nest, screaming, and without hesitation will attack the enemy, if necessary.