Japanese Sparrowhawk - BirdForum Opus

Accipiter gularis

Photo by wengchun

Description

Photo taken: Putrajaya Wetland, Malaysia

Identification

Japanese Sparrowhawk (Japanese Lesser Sparrowhawk) Accipiter gularis

The Japanese Sparrowhawk (Accipiter gularis) is a bird of prey in the family Accipitridae which also includes many other diurnal raptors such as eagles, buzzards and harriers.

It breeds in China, Japan, Korea and Siberia; winters in Indonesia and Philippines, passing through the rest of South-east Asia. It is a bird of open and wooded areas.

It is 23-30cm in length, with the female larger than the male. The male has dark barred underwings, lightly barred underparts, dark grey upperparts and red eyes. Female has yellow eyes and dark barred underparts. juvenile has brown upperparts and streaks on breast.

It feeds on birds taken on flight.

RANGE North-East Asia. Breeds in eastern and southern Siberia, in eastern China, Korea and Japan. Resident in southern Japan and the Ryukyu Islands, South Korea, southern China and Taiwan. Northern breeders are migratory and winter from southern China, Thailand and Indochina south to the Malay Peninsula and Indonesia, most numerous on Sulawesi and the Greater Sundas, rarely east to Timor.

HABITAT Open forest, forest edge and cultivted land with scattered trees.