Hearing a dull thud as something hits our ground floor
windows is a frequent occurrence. I was alerted by a rather loud thud thump
last week as I was having breakfast. I rarely bother to take immediate action
as usually they are caused by blackbirds chasing other birds from their
territory. So I let the dust settle – so to speak – because the unfortunate
bird will often have a broken neck; or if it us still alive I
place it in a shoebox with a few seeds and if it is going to survive it will be
ready after an hour or so to place under a hedge and freedom.
A peep through the lounge curtains indicated there had been
a major incident – feathers were carried by a light breeze across the lawn. As I rounded the corner of the house I
disturbed a Sparrowhawk who had opened the carcass of a Wood Pigeon and already
had sampled a good portion of the breast.
By tidying away the carcass I missed an opportunity to
observe what would have been more interesting behaviour. An hour or so later the
Sparrowhawk returned only to find some
other thoughless beast had deprived him of his meal.