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Sparrowhawk
Sparrowhawk (sometimes sparrow hawk) may refer to several species of small hawk in the subfamily Accipitrinae The Accipitrinae are the Family (biology), subfamily of the Accipitridae often known as the "true" hawks. The subfamily contains 73 species that are divided into 11 genera. It includes the genus ''Accipiter'' which formerly included many more sp .... "Sparrow-hawk" or sparhawk originally referred to '' Accipiter nisus'', now called "Eurasian" or "northern" sparrowhawk to distinguish it from other species. The American kestrel (''Falco sparverius''), a North American falcon species, is also commonly referred to as a "sparrow hawk", although it is not closely related. Sparrowhawk species include: {{Animal common name Accipitrinae Birds by common name ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eurasian Sparrowhawk
The Eurasian sparrowhawk (''Accipiter nisus''), also known as the northern sparrowhawk or simply the sparrowhawk, is a small bird of prey in the family Accipitridae. Adult male Eurasian sparrowhawks have bluish grey upperparts and orange-barred underparts; females and juveniles are brown above with brown barring below. The female is up to 25% larger than the male – one of the greatest size differences between the sexes in any bird species. Though it is a predator which specialises in catching woodland birds, the Eurasian sparrowhawk can be found in any habitat and often hunts garden birds in towns and cities. Males tend to take smaller birds, including Tit (bird), tits, finches and Old World sparrow, sparrows; females catch primarily Thrush (bird), thrushes and starlings but are capable of killing birds weighing or more. The Eurasian sparrowhawk is found throughout the temperate and subtropical parts of the Old World; whilst birds from the northern parts of the range Bird mig ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Black Sparrowhawk
The black sparrowhawk (''Astur melanoleucus''), sometimes known as the black goshawk or great sparrowhawk, is a bird of prey belonging to the family (biology), family Accipitridae. It was formerly placed in the genus ''Accipiter''. It occurs mainly in forest and non-desert areas south of the Sahara, particularly where there are large trees suitable for nesting; favored habitat includes suburban and human-altered landscapes. It preys predominantly on birds of moderate size, such as pigeons and doves, in suburban areas.Curtis O.E., Hockey P.A.R., Koeslag A. 2007Competition with Egyptian geese ''Alopochen aegyptiaca'' overrides environmental factors in determining productivity of Black Sparrowhawks ''Accipiter melanoleucus'' ''Ibis'' 149: 502-508. Taxonomy Two subspecies are recognised: * ''A. m. temminckii'' Gustav Hartlaub, Hartlaub, 1855 – Liberia to north Angola * ''A. m. melanoleucus'' (Andrew Smith (zoologist), Smith, A), 1830 – Sudan and Ethiopia through east Africa to S ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Japanese Sparrowhawk
The Japanese sparrowhawk (''Tachyspiza gularis'') is a bird of prey in the family Accipitridae which also includes many other diurnal raptors such as eagles, buzzards and harriers. It was formerly placed in the genus ''Accipiter''. The bird is known by many alternative names such as the Japanese lesser, Asiatic, or Eastern sparrowhawk. This species is a small raptor with broader and rounder wings and a shorter tail. Its total length measures . It has a dark back and whitish underside with brown-grey barring and red-brown colouring on the sides in males, and with heavier brown barring on the abdomen in females. Both sexes have a stripe across the throat, but its more obvious in the female. Is it typically identified by its appearance, but occasionally produces a chattering kiki-kik-kik...' sound. This species generally breeds in parts of Russia, Korea, Japan, and China. There are three subspecies of Japanese sparrowhawk that differ by distribution and appearance. The species is g ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Little Sparrowhawk
The little sparrowhawk (''Tachyspiza minulla'') is a species of Afrotropical bird of prey in the family Accipitridae. It was formerly placed in the genus ''Accipiter''. It is the smallest member of the genus ''Tachyspiza'' and forms a superspecies with the red-thighed sparrowhawk (''Tachyspiza erythropus''). Taxonomy The little sparrowhawk was formally described in 1800 by the French zoologist François Daudin under the binomial name ''Falco minullus''. Daudin based his account on "le minulle" that had been described and illustrated by François Levaillant in 1798. Levaillant had collected his specimens near the Gamtoos River in the province of Eastern Cape in South Africa. The specific epithet ''minullus'' is Modern Latin meaning "very small". The little sparrowhawk was formerly assigned to the genus ''Accipiter''. In 2024 a comprehensive molecular phylogenetic study of the Accipitridae confirmed earlier work that had shown that the genus was polyphyletic. To resolve the non-mo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Accipitrinae
The Accipitrinae are the Family (biology), subfamily of the Accipitridae often known as the "true" hawks. The subfamily contains 73 species that are divided into 11 genera. It includes the genus ''Accipiter'' which formerly included many more species. The large genus was found to be non-monophyletic and was split into several new or resurrected genera. The birds in this subfamily are primarily woodland birds that hunt by sudden dashes from a concealed perch, with long tails, broad wings and high visual acuity facilitating this lifestyle. Hawks, including the accipitrines, are believed to have vision several times sharper than humans, in part because of the great number of photoreceptor cells in their retinas (up to 1,000,000 per square mm, against 200,000 for humans), a very high number of Neuron, nerves connecting the receptors to the brain, and an indented Fovea centralis, fovea, which magnifies the central portion of the visual field. Eagles, such as the Bald Eagle in the fami ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Levant Sparrowhawk
The Levant sparrowhawk (''Tachyspiza brevipes'') is a small bird of prey. It measures in length with a wingspan of . The female is larger than the male, but the difference is not as marked as with Eurasian sparrowhawk. The adult male is blue-grey above, with dark wingtips, and barred reddish below. It breeds in forests from Greece and the Balkans east to southern Russia. It is migratory, wintering from Egypt across to southwestern Iran. It will migrate in large flocks, unlike the more widespread Eurasian sparrowhawk. Taxonomy The Levant sparrowhawk was formally described in 1850 by the Russian naturalist Nikolai Severtzov under the binomial name ''Astur brevipes''. The species was formerly placed in the large and diverse genus '' Accipiter''. In 2024 a comprehensive molecular phylogenetic study of the Accipitridae confirmed earlier work that had shown that the genus was polyphyletic. To resolve the non-monophyly, ''Accipiter'' was divided into six genera. The genus '' Tachysp ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Frances's Sparrowhawk
Frances's sparrowhawk (''Tachyspiza francesiae'') is a small bird of prey. This species was formerly placed in the genus ''Accipiter''. The nominate subspecies, ''T. f. francesiae'', is endemic to Madagascar, and the other subspecies are found in the Comoro Islands. The Anjouan sparrowhawk (''Tachyspiza francesiae pusillus''), also known as the Anjouan Island sparrowhawk, Ndzuwani goshawk or Joanna Island goshawk, was thought to be extinct until searches in the 1980s and in 2005 confirmed that it is still extant. The name "Frances's sparrowhawk" commemorates Lady Frances Cole (died 1847), wife of the Cape Colony governor Galbraith Lowry Cole. Taxonomy Frances's sparrowhawk was species description, formally described in 1834 by the Scottish zoologist Andrew Smith (zoologist), Andrew Smith under the binomial name ''Accipiter francesii''. Smith designated the type locality (biology), type locality as Madagascar and thanked Lady Frances Cole for providing the specimen. Lady Frances ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ovambo Sparrowhawk
The Ovambo or Ovampo sparrowhawk, also known as Hilgert's sparrowhawk, (''Accipiter ovampensis'') is a species of sub-Saharan African bird of prey in the family Accipitridae. It takes its name from the Ovamboland in northern Namibia. Description The Ovambo sparrowhawk is a small sparrowhawk with the typical broad winged, long-tailed shape of a member of the genus ''Accipiter''. The adults have plain grey upperparts with white bars on the rump and white underparts which are finely barred with grey but with a plain white vent. The tail has three dark bars and a broad, dark subterminal band. The bill is black, contrasting with the red cere, the eyes are dark red and the legs are orange. There is a melanistic form which is all black except for the white barred flight feathers on the underwing. The juvenile is browner and may be white over the underparts and head or have a brown head and rufous underparts. Females are about 14% bigger than males, weighing in at to the males . The tota ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Collared Sparrowhawk
The collared sparrowhawk (''Tachyspiza cirrocephala'') is a small, slim bird of prey in the family Accipitridae found in Australia, New Guinea and nearby smaller islands. It was formerly placed in the genus ''Accipiter''. As its name implies the collared sparrowhawk is a specialist in hunting small birds. It is characterised by its slight brow ridges and slender feet. The last segment of their middle toe projects beyond the claws of the other toes. Taxonomy The collared sparrowhawk was species description, formally described in 1817 by the French ornithologist Louis Pierre Vieillot, Louis Vieillot based on a specimen that had been collected in "Nouvelle-Hollande", now the state of New South Wales in eastern Australia. Vieillot coined the binomial name ''Sparvius cirrocephalus''. The specific epithet combines the Modern Latin ''cirrus'' or ''cirrhus'' meaning 'cloud' with the Latin ''cirrus'', ''cirri'' meaning 'ringlet'. This species was formerly placed in the genus ''Accipiter'' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rufous-chested Sparrowhawk
The rufous-breasted sparrowhawk (''Accipiter rufiventris''), also known as the rufous-chested sparrowhawk and as the red-breasted sparrowhawk, is a species of bird of prey in the family Accipitridae. It is found in Angola, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Rwanda, South Africa, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Description A small raptor, with a height of about 30 cm and wingspan of 72 cm, the rufous-breasted sparrowhawk is named for its distinctive rufous-coloured underparts, which can be seen both perching and in flight. It is dark grey slate-brown above, including the head, with a black bill and eyes that are yellow at all ages. In flight, the bold bars on both its wings and tail are clearly visible. Juvenile plumage ranges from the rufous-color of adults to more white, but all have feathers with dark shaft streaks on their underside. It can be differentiated from the similar Ovambo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Red-thighed Sparrowhawk
The red-thighed sparrowhawk (''Tachyspiza erythropus''), alternatively known as the red-legged sparrowhawk or western little sparrowhawk, is a species of sparrowhawk in the family Accipitridae from western and northern central Africa. This species was formerly placed in the genus ''Accipiter''. Taxonomy The red-thighed sparrowhawk was formally described in 1885 by the German ornithologist Gustav Hartlaub based on a specimen collected in "Rio Bontry", now Butre on the coast of Ghana. He coined the binomial name "Nisus erythropus". The species was formerly placed in the genus ''Accipiter''. In 2024 a comprehensive molecular phylogenetic study of the Accipitridae confirmed earlier work that had shown that the genus was polyphyletic. To resolve the non-monophyly, ''Accipiter'' was divided into six genera. The genus '' Tachyspiza'' was resurrected to accommodate the red-thighed sparrowhawk together with 26 other species that had previously been placed in ''Accipiter''. The resurrect ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Madagascar Sparrowhawk
The Madagascar sparrowhawk (''Accipiter madagascariensis'') is a species of bird of prey in the family Accipitridae. It is endemic to Madagascar. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forest, subtropical or tropical moist lowland forest, subtropical or tropical moist montane forest, dry savanna, and subtropical or tropical dry shrubland. It is threatened by habitat loss. It may form a superspecies with Eurasian sparrowhawk The Eurasian sparrowhawk (''Accipiter nisus''), also known as the northern sparrowhawk or simply the sparrowhawk, is a small bird of prey in the family Accipitridae. Adult male Eurasian sparrowhawks have bluish grey upperparts and orange-barred ... (''A. nisus'') and rufous-chested sparrowhawk (''A. rufiventris'') (Ferguson-Lees and Christie 2001). Population and Habitat The Madagascar Sparrowhawk inhabits Madagascar and the Comoro Islands. These Islands are almost 300 miles away from Madagascar over open ocean. It is suspected that t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
