Sperber Upper Austria

The Sperber, in English the Eurasian sparrowhawk (Accipiter nisus), is a slightly built, short-winged raptor and the smallest native member of the Accipitridae. As is typical for the genus, there is a pronounced size difference between the sexes. Males reach a body length of around 29 to 34 centimetres with a wingspan of 59 to 64 centimetres and a weight of roughly 110 to 196 grams, barely larger than a pigeon. The noticeably larger females measure 35 to 41 centimetres in length, span 67 to 80 centimetres and weigh 185 to 342 grams. In flight, the short, rounded wings, the long, square-ended tail and the rapid, rowing wingbeats alternating with short glides stand out.

The sparrowhawk inhabits richly structured landscapes with woodlands, forest edges, copses and hedgerows, preferring younger conifer stands as breeding sites. Unlike the more forest-bound goshawk, the Sperber is highly adaptable and regularly moves into settlements, parks, cemeteries and larger gardens wherever sufficient songbirds are available as prey. Its hunting behaviour is highly specialised on small birds. From a perch or in fast, low-level surprise attacks along hedges, woodland edges and garden structures, the male takes mainly tits, finches and other small songbirds, while the larger female can strike prey up to the size of a pigeon or thrush. Hunting at garden feeders in winter is entirely natural behaviour and not a reason for intervention.

Reliable identification and separation from the goshawk (Habicht, Accipiter gentilis) is a classic task of hunters' species knowledge. The goshawk is markedly larger and more powerfully built, with female wingspans of roughly 100 to 120 centimetres, appears bulkier in flight, has stronger legs and talons and shows a striking white supercilium. By comparison the sparrowhawk has conspicuously thin, matchstick-like legs and toes, a narrower chest and a longer, square-tipped tail. Size comparisons require care, however, since a large female sparrowhawk can almost reach the size of a small male goshawk. Legally the Sperber is formally listed under the German Federal Hunting Law but has a year-round closed season and is strictly protected under section 44 of the Federal Nature Protection Act and the EU Birds Directive. Austria and Switzerland likewise apply a full year-round closed season. Any pursuit, capture or killing constitutes a criminal offence.