Blackbird Mortality (1 Viewer)

[tony davies]

My brother inlaw, who lives in the town centre of Bungay Suffolk, asked me whether I knew how a blackbird, decapitated (head to one side) with only the breast meat taken came to its death.

It was in a high walled garden, not too far from water meadows.

He didn't think a fox/mink was able to get into the garden.

I have watched and approached Sparrow Hawks on a kill an normally eat everything and anot easily frightened away.

Any ideas

Many thanks

Tony

 

[mikfoz]

It's probably a raptor that felt full and left the rest or one that was disturbed. A mink would likely scoff the lot by bolting it down.

A Sparrowhawk will leave a kill quick sharp iif attacked by Crows, but then the Crow would generally eat the kill.

The fact it neatly went for the breast meat first does suggest a bird of prey, the decapitation also.

Another possibility is that the half-eaten bird was dropped in flight by something like a Peregrine being chased by Gulls who then did not recover it.