A few small woodland birds

Despite yet another dark and dingy weekend morning, I was surprisingly motivated to get up and go out.  Although it was raining when I first left it soon stopped though remained dull and overcast making, as with last week, photography difficult but at least the wind wasn’t as bad.  Most of the photographs taken I deleted on the spot, mostly through blurred movement as they wouldn’t stay in any one spot for more than a few seconds though, with at best only a 1/300th of a second shutter speed, I was lucky  to get as many as I did especially combined with the limited depth of field.

It was a couple of hours into the morning when all of a sudden the birds made a commotion and fled and I just managed to see a flash of grey come streaking through the trees and land some distance away.  I could see through the branches that it was a male Sparrowhawk.  I think it must of aborted at the last minute changing direction from its intended prey and seemed to be looking back in disgust. Although it then flew out of sight I was sure it was still around as I could hear mobbing Magpies and the birds I was photographing took a long time to pluck up the courage to return.  I’ve only ever once managed to witness a Sparrowhawk make a successful kill and that was a pigeon.