Birdwatching - 3051 🐦

🦉 The Eurasian sparrowhawk (Accipiter nisus), also known as the northern sparrowhawk

• Accipiter accipere (lat.) to grab
• nisus according to ancient Greek mythology Nisus (or Nisus), king of Megara, and his Skill's daughter, who betrayed her father because of her love passion for the enemy - the Cretan King Minos, were turned by the gods into birds of prey

This feathered robber is a true master of sudden attacks. Despite its modest size (slightly larger than a pigeon), it terrifies small birds in the forests. It is easy to recognize by its rapid flight: low above the ground, alternating frequent flaps and glides, and in a second the victim is already in its tenacious paws.

Unlike buzzards or kites, the sparrowhawk rarely hovers in the air looking for prey, preferring lightning-fast throws from an ambush. It likes to settle at the edges of forests, where it can set up an ambush among the branches.