Early Sunday Lunch

Looking out of the back window on a Sunday morning I often expect to see some of the more common suburban garden bird types dropping in for a bit of bread or seed off the bird table. More often that not I find myself cursing the Pigeons that also descend on the garden and seem to hoover all the food up, before the Sparrows, Blackbirds and Robin have had chance to feed.

This Sunday was a little different though, the feeding party was joined by a female Sparrowhawk and her early lunch consisted of....Pigeon!!

I have seen a Sparrowhawk in the area a few times over the last couple of years, but this is the first time I've actually seen one in the garden. Worried that I was going to disturb it, the following photos were actually taken through a double glazed window whilst doing my best to hide behind the curtain.

Considering the camera settings, iso1600 giving me 1/60th at f5.6 and iso3200 giving 1/200th at f5.6, and the fact that I was shooting through a double glazed window, they have still provided a reasonable result.

Click On Either Photo To View Larger