Thud!

[spangle82]

Was on the phone a couple of days ago when I heard a 'thud' on the front window. Not so unusual, birdstrikes happen. But then I heard some squeaks of a bird in distress; I looked out and there on the front lawn was a smallish bird of prey with a blackbird or thrush in its talons. Would normally have run off to get the camera but the call was important. What was the bird of prey likely to have been? Amazing to think these things hunt in housing estates!

[Planet Claire]

Sounds like the actions of a sparrowhawk.

[Turn7]

Was the BOP trying to mantle the prey ?

This a Sparrowhawk - biggest predator to songbirds round here....

[Evanivitch]

Or a Peregrine. The smoke stack residents used to chase the gulls into office windows all the time.

[spangle82]

Turn7 said:

Was the BOP trying to mantle the prey ?

This a Sparrowhawk - biggest predator to songbirds round here....

About that sort of pose, same expression, but it was speckly brown. The bird was 2-3x the size of its prey if that helps.