Monday, September 16, 2013

DEATH AFTER BREAKFAST

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.