Driving back home this afternoon I saw this..........
After studying the image and trawling through the Internet, my conclusion is it is a Harris Hawk? Definitely not a UK species so what the heck was it doing in a roadside tree in sleepy Leicestershire???
My only conclusion is it must be an escaped bird, especially when you look at the suspicious looking branch in the lower left part of the image, a leather Jessie maybe?
They're probably the most common escapee's from falconers, someone will be looking for it, I don't think they travel far.
ReplyDeleteLooks like a Harris Hawk to me. What a surprise. I hope it'll be ok. Lovely photograph too.
ReplyDeleteHi Russel. I'm told that these are very adept at catching rabbits, so I guess that this one will be fine in Leicestershire!!
DeleteAparently they are very adept at killing almost anything, including Buzzards!!
DeleteYep, Harris Hawk, or something very similar. They're sometimes considered 'working birds'. Came across a couple once who were sending a Ferret down rabbit holes to flush the rabbits out, and the Harris Hawk to catch them.
ReplyDeleteDefinitively a Harris Hawk! Beautiful picture!
ReplyDeleteThey occur in the Americas!
Escapees in Europe are seen more often than one should think.
I can also say that it is the only hawk brave enough to go for a Grey Heron on the ground!
How strange: I saw one too the other day..... coming up on my blog very shortly!
I was fortunate to watch it catch a Magpie and eat it, and have my camera with me!
Cheers!
Glad to hear the Green beast is up and running mate
ReplyDeleteYep she on the road again mate, still waiting for what its going to cost though!
DeleteHi Paul
ReplyDeleteYes, definitely a Harris Hawk. There was an escapee up in Lancashire last year. Excellent shot though and it must have been trilling to see such a cracking bird randomly.