NEast London, Interesting Accip images? (1 Viewer)

[KenM]

Got this a bit late (and a bit distant perhaps 4-500m?) yesterday am, shallow dives yes but!....thought the ''vertical'' stoop was unusual for this species, don't recollect seeing one at 90' before quite like this before?

Cheers

 

[tconzemi]

I have never seen this, Ken

 

[KenM]

I have never seen this, Ken

Now we are two!....will we make seven.

 

[Richard Prior]

Did you see the outcome Ken, ie, did it then revert to normal flight? I saw something like this in Lebanon once, but it was because the bird had been shot:-C

 

[Andy Adcock]

Is it hunting, display or Falcon playtime?


A

 

[dantheman]

In which case there are also a number of other options imo -


You had the camera on it's side

Heart Attack

Jonathan Livingstone Sparrowhawk


?

 

[ChrisKten]

Well, it doesn't happen often, but what would a Raptor do if it dropped it's prey? I've seen it happen with struggling prey just after the Sparrowhawk has taken off, so not too much of a stretch for it to happen in flight... or is it? Would it continue flying straight? Or dive straight down to recover the prey?

Although to be honest, my eyes aren't good enough to even ID the species in these pics, let alone another bird falling through the sky

 

[KenM]

Did you see the outcome Ken, ie, did it then revert to normal flight? I saw something like this in Lebanon once, but it was because the bird had been shot:-C

Is it hunting, display or Falcon playtime?
A

Initially caught in level flight just before "about twisting", then a perpendicular stoop, before disappearing into the canopy, It didn't look like display, it was presumably an opportunist "hunting moment", actually accelerating towards the end of the stoop.

In which case there are also a number of other options imo -


You had the camera on it's side

Heart Attack

Jonathan Livingstone Sparrowhawk


?

If you try hard enough Dan! You might get that job in forensics that you've always been angling for....unfortunately for you on this occasion, I was upright...you must get out more.

 

[Hauksen]

Hi Ken,

thought the ''vertical'' stoop was unusual for this species, don't recollect seeing one at 90' before quite like this before?

I've once seen a Goshawk flip over and loop through maybe 120° to dive at a target it had already passed (in what a fighter pilot might call "split S" manoeuvre).

However, as this dive was entered from not so far above treetop height, it was all over in a heartbeat, there was no prolonged vertical phase, and I didn't see the end of it either as the Goshawk dived out of sight behind a treeline.

Regards,

Henning

 

[CharlesFentiman]

Ken, I have just remembered one particular occasion a few years back! I saw a female sparrowhawk drop from a great height and dive at great speed at a steep angle, but not vertical and I was able to follow it all the way down to a collared dove sitting on an exposed spray of a tree! I did not see what happened after the explosion of feather but I am guessing it did not turn out well for the dove!
Cheers
Charles

 

[KenM]

Hi Ken,

I've once seen a Goshawk flip over and loop through maybe 120° to dive at a target it had already passed (in what a fighter pilot might call "split S" manoeuvre).

However, as this dive was entered from not so far above treetop height, it was all over in a heartbeat, there was no prolonged vertical phase, and I didn't see the end of it either as the Goshawk dived out of sight behind a treeline.

Regards,

Henning

Hi Henning,

Yes...we rarely see Accipters at this stage of engagement, as invariably the canopy obstructs the view, unlike Falcons that use the open sky for their hunting.

Cheers

PS You have a great camera....have had mine two years, wouldn't leave home without it.

Ken, I have just remembered one particular occasion a few years back! I saw a female sparrowhawk drop from a great height and dive at great speed at a steep angle, but not vertical and I was able to follow it all the way down to a collared dove sitting on an exposed spray of a tree! I did not see what happened after the explosion of feather but I am guessing it did not turn out well for the dove!
Cheers
Charles

Charles, I once saw a Peregrine in a "shallow" (perhaps 40 degrees) dive, hit a Pigeon over the Welsh coast many years ago, and that too was a "feathered explosion". It just goes to show that versatility rules when opportunity is presented, and the "rule book" goes out the window.

Cheers

 

[John Cantelo]

I'd understand it if it was near Chelsea rather than NE London, as it could have learnt the art of diving by watching Didier Drogba a few years back.

 

[Andy Adcock]

I'd understand it if it was near Chelsea rather than NE London, as it could have learnt the art of diving by watching Didier Drogba a few years back.

Perhaps he remembers Klinsman.......:-O



A