Sunday 10 March 2013

Cycle of life


Contains some pictures you might find disturbing.

It must have happened ten days ago. The poor sparrow hawk. In our neighbour’s garden. We think he must have been hit by a car. We have seen many sad, yet magnificent cases of his own predatory skills. Now it is his turn. Could it be the same sparrow hawk that was trapped in our garage last year? When Harry rescued him, the handsome angry bird gave us those wonderfully defiant pictures. Is it the same bird that spread-eagled himself against our conservatory window whilst Poppy our parrot quivered inside on the floor? Was it him that lorded his kingdom from our rooftop? Was he the one, who some months ago, flew into our window and, mildly concussed, picked himself up and flew away? I do hope not.


















A BSG Cylon Claw?




Is it goodbye old friend?


LINKS





29 comments:

  1. Just brilliant!

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    1. Thanks Laurie. I am afraid I overlooked giving H next door the credit for the pictures.I think most people like yourself have guessed!

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  2. Fantastic shots! Beauty in Death.

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  3. Who would have thought you could get such stunning pictures of such a sad event.

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  4. That is really sad - such beautiful birds. When I was teaching we found a dead barn owl in one of our quadrangles. It had flown into the hall wall which we higher than the rest of the building. Sad but the children got the opportunity to have a close look at its beautiful feathers.

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  5. These are fab pictures Roger, so beautiful and sad! Brave of you to post them. I know exactly what you mean - that foot looks exactly like a Cylon hand. Didn't realise you were a fan! Brilliant!

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    1. Couldn't agree more - stunning shots! And a Galactica fan to boot!

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    2. Hidden depths indeed! It was one of my favourite shows. I would never have guessed you were also a fan. Poor hawk - I do hope it wasn't the one you photographed last year. Above commenters are spot-on though, the series of pictures is absolutely amazing. I wouldn't have believed that such a sad even would make such an artistic post.

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  6. I do hope it was not YOUR sparrow hawk Roger. I loved your sparrow hawk posts and would be sad if this was the last. The pictures are brilliant and would certainly be a fitting epitaph.

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  7. Cycle of life - I like that. The photos do him justice.

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  8. I do love these photographs. I expect not everyone will, but I think they are dramatic and brilliant.

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  9. Excellent photos. Predators are relatively rare and provide such valuable service to the environment. Sorry that this fellow met an untimely end.

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  10. Mariella Horton10 March 2013 at 23:32

    Sparrow hawks are magnificent birds. I thought that I'd be horrified at these pictures, but they are strangely compelling and beautiful.

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    1. They are very compelling! It makes me want to examine every detail. What a terribly sad end though.

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  11. Stunning shots. Brave decision to post these but I think a gardening blog is the perfect place to show them. Like you say, life and death.

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  12. A remarkable series of photographs Roger. They have a narrative of their own, albeit a rather gruesome one. Like others, I am hoping this isn't 'your' regular hawk, if only because it would be such a shame to lose such a photogenic visitor to your garden - and your blog!

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  13. Clare Rand, Chicago11 March 2013 at 15:51

    Extraordinary pictures. I wouldn't have had you down as a Battlestar Galactica fan Roger! I didn't realize that sparrow hawk talons were so long, the comparison with Cylon hands is a good one.

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  14. Thank you everyone for your kind felicitations. On these occasions it can be difficult to find the appropriate words to show my appreciation to each of you.

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  15. I must confess to having no idea what on earth a Cylon was. If it hadn't been for the caption link, I would probably still be none the wiser! It's not every day you get to learn about ornithology and cult television through the same blog!

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  16. Those pictures were moving enough.....then you had to go and put that last few words in Roger - I had a little tear in my eye by the time I read those!

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  17. Great picturs of a sad event, thanks for sharing it with us. I must admit i had no idea what Cylon was either so I was pleased for the link too!

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  18. You could send it to our friend at Head & Tails and have it stuffed like our Pippin

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