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  • Sparrowhawk

Sparrowhawk

Sparrowhawk (male)
Sparrowhawk (male)
Sparrowhawk (female)
Sparrowhawk (female)
Sparrowhawk (female / in flight)
Sparrowhawk (female / in flight)
  • Scientific name: Accipiter nisus
  • Bird family: Kites, hawks and eagles
  • UK conservation status: Amber
  • Protected by The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981

Sparrowhawk call audio

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Sophie Neill, Xeno-Canto

Key information

Sparrowhawks are small birds of prey. They're adapted for hunting birds in confined spaces like dense woodland, so gardens are ideal hunting grounds for them. Adult male sparrowhawks have bluish-grey back and wings and orangey-brown bars on their chest and belly. Females and young birds have brown back and wings, and brown bars underneath. Sparrowhawks have bright yellow or orangey eyes, long, yellow legs and long talons. Females are larger than males, as with all birds of prey.

What they eat:

Mainly small birds, but 120 different species have been recorded. Males can catch birds up to thrush size, but females, being bigger, can catch birds up to pigeon size. Some sparrowhawks catch bats.

Measurements:

Length:
28-38cm
Wingspan:
55-70cm
Weight:
110-196g (male); 185-342g (female)

Population:

UK breeding is the number of pairs breeding annually. UK wintering is the number of individuals present from October to March. UK passage is the number of individuals passing through on migration in spring and/or autumn.
UK breeding:
35,000 pairs

Identifying features:

This bird species has different identifying features depending on sex/age/season.

Sparrowhawk (male)

Male sparrowhawk
Feather colour: Black Blue Brown Cream/buff Grey Orange White
Leg colour: Yellow
Beak: Black Yellow Short Hooked Powerful Chunky
Natural habitats: Farmland Grassland Heathland Urban and suburban Wetland

Sparrowhawk (female)

Female Sparrowhawk
Feather colour: Black Brown Cream/buff Grey White
Leg colour: Yellow
Beak: Black Yellow Short Hooked Powerful Chunky
Natural habitats: Woodland Farmland Grassland Heathland Urban and suburban Wetland

Similar birds:

Our Wildlife Enquiries team probably receives more queries about sparrowhawks than any other species of bird of prey. They can be confused with several other birds of prey. Find out what to look for.

Sparrowhawk (less than a year old) - Young sparrowhawks have brown wings and backs, with chestnut-brown edges to the feathers. Their breast feathers have brown streaks or chevrons. Adult female sparrowhawks are also brownish, but with horizontal bars on the breast feathers and a greyer back and wings.

Sparrowhawk (adult male) - Adult male sparrowhawks have orange breasts and slate-grey or bluish backs and wings. As they get older, their eyes turn from yellow to orange.

Kestrel - Kestrels sometimes come into gardens, but sparrowhawks are more common visitors. If you can see their eyes, sparrowhawks have piercing yellow or orangey irises, whereas kestrels' eyes are all-dark.

Peregrine - Although peregrines are breeding successfully in many UK cities now, a bird which has killed a pigeon in your garden is still more likely to be a sparrowhawk. Again, look at the eyes - peregrine eyes are all-dark.

Merlin - In 99 per cent of garden situations, merlins can be ruled out. They are supremely adapted for hunting in open country - the enclosed spaces of gardens just aren't their style. It's very unlikely that you'll see one sitting on a fence or roof. Unlike sparrowhawks, merlins and other falcons always have all-dark eyes.

Goshawk - Goshawks can look similar to sparrowhawks (a large female sparrowhawk can be almost the same size as a male goshawk), but again, they don't really 'do' gardens. They are very shy birds which inhabit large areas of woodland or tracts of open countryside.

Male kestrel illustration
Kestrel
Peregrine adult
Peregrine falcon
Adult male merlin in flight
Merlin
Male Goshawk
Goshawk

Where and when to see them

Sparrowhawks breed in woodland but also visit gardens and more open country. They can be seen in towns and cities, as well as rural areas. Listen for the alarm calls of smaller birds as they spot a sparrowhawk and will alert other birds in the area to the danger. In the UK sparrowhawks are found everywhere, except for parts of the Scottish Highlands, the Western Isles and Shetland.

* This map is intended as a guide. It shows general distribution rather than detailed, localised populations.
  • Resident
  • Passage
  • Summer
  • Winter
Sparrowhawk distribution map

Sparrowhawks can be seen at any time of year; you might see birds displaying to each other in early spring, when males perform a 'rollercoaster' flight, climbing up and diving back down again to impress females.

  • jan
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RSPB reserves

  • RSPB Blean Woods
  • RSPB Bowers Marsh
  • RSPB Wolves Wood

Video

A sparrowhawk surveys the area from its vantage point

A sparrowhawk surveys the area from its vantage point

sparrowhawk
Sparrowhawk, Accipter nissus, in long grass, Cheshire

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In more depth

A top predator

A top predator

Sparrowhawk hunting

Sparrowhawk hunting

Sparrowhawk population trends and threats

Sparrowhawk population trends and threats

Sparrowhawks breeding and nesting habits

Sparrowhawks breeding and nesting habits

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