Cyn's Nature Notes: The Magpies and the Sparrowhawk

Sunday 10 March 2013

The Magpies and the Sparrowhawk

What an amazing morning, so many birds in the garden, wrens, feeding and displaying robins, many blackbirds, a beautiful song thrush collecting nesting material on the bank, great spotted woodpecker on the silver birch, green woodpecker on the grass of the back kitchen lawn,No-tail the pigeon and his partner and while I was still spotting birds an amazing happening occurred.

It was breathtaking and so quick, a female blackbird was feeding on the lawn when suddenly and swiftly a sparrowhawk hurtled toward her, as this was happening two magpies who had been at their usual lookout post in the ginkgo biloba tree dive bombed the sparrow hawk who was almost upon the blackbird.

The sudden assault upon the sparrowhawk by the pair of magpies, threw the bird of prey off balance, he was momentarily turned upside down and a wing brushed along the grass as he righted himself . He quickly regained his balance and flew off --- not as fast as he had flown in though!

This was so sudden that as he flew away the female blackbird was still on the grass, but she quickly scuttled into the undergrowth of a nearby border. The magpies chased the sparrowhawk out of the garden and returned to their roost in the ginkgo, as they settled, so the sparrowhawk returned and the magpies once more gave chase out of the garden and into the orchard at the end of the garden. The sparrow hawk continued to be mobbed by the two magpies and quickly realised defeat and flew away.

I found this episode particularly interesting because I wrote once before about the attack and subsequent killing in the garden of a female blackbird by a pair of magpies, and yet for some reason they appeared to be defending this blackbird.

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About this Blog

When we moved to our present home in December 1987, I was very ill and bedridden. My garden was a life-saver, although it was very different then. The first thing I did was to put up bird-feeders, and long hours were spent lying indoors in a recliner. This was when I discovered many things. Do you know the underside of every blue tit’s tail is differently marked? Gradually, over the years, the garden changed. We put in shrubs and plants that would not only enhance the garden, but would also be good for wildlife. The first rabbit we saw was so joyful for us. The deer eat the flowers, prune the apple trees, eat the marrow, and are wonderful to watch. Foxes have been a major part of our wildlife. We have fed them each night for more than 20 years. They are such a delight, especially in late summer and early autumn when there are youngsters. They behave like puppies and are great fun to watch.

I love all wildlife: the mason bees that nest in the brickwork of the bungalow, the hornets that last year made their home in the roof above our bedroom, the bees currently nesting in the roof above the bathroom. On a hot evening, if you stand quietly in the bathroom, you can hear this amazing sound: it is very rhythmic and reminds me of the waves at the seaside. It is made by the beating of the bees’ wings as they fan their nest to keep the temperature at the right level -- how many people have heard that sound? I feel so privileged.

Obviously, I feed the birds. When I open the window in the morning I call “Come on Bobby and Blackie”, and one followed swiftly by the other they fly immediately to the bird table. Each morning, on rising, I make my way to the kitchen and find the squirrels already sitting on the window ledge waiting to be fed. Winter brings the moorhens and spring time the mallards. Our pond is a poor effort from a human point of view, but wild creatures see it differently. On summer days, the grass snakes spend long hours in the pond: eating the fish, froglets, toadlings, newts, and any other living creature they can swallow. Although I hate to see the pond emptied this way, I do enjoy the snakes and feel they are an important part of the balance of nature in the garden. Watching a dragonfly nymph climbing out of the pond, up a plant stalk, and then over the next few hours gradually transforming into a beautiful dragonfly -- these are contented hours well spent.

It has been my pleasure to write and publish a nature column each month. I am always delighted to hear how much pleasure this brings to my readers. I have often been asked if I have written a book, so I am making more of my writings and photography available through this web site and blog.