The Sparrowhawk

As a boy in a Derbyshire village, Ian Newton discovered his first Sparrowhawk nest and so began a continuing fascination with this relatively common but often elusive bird of prey. Many years later as a scientist with the Nature Conservancy Council he embarked on a 14-year study of the species in two areas of SW Scotland, attempting each year to trap and ring all Sparrowhawks present and to find all of their nests. As a result many individuals were closely studied throughout their lives.

Acknowledgements

1 Background, study areas and methods
2 The Sparrowhawk
3 Nesting habitat
4 Nest spacing and breeding density
5 Ranging behaviour
6 Population trends
7 Hunting and feeding behaviour
8 Food
9 The Sparrowhawk as a predator
10 Breeding season
11 The breeding cycle: early stages
12 The breeding cycle: eggs and incubation
13 The breeding cycle: growth of young
14 The breeding cycle: parental care
15 The breeding cycle: post-fledgling period
16 Season trend in breeding success
17 Nest failures
18 Age and breeding
19 Moult
20 Dispersal
21 Territory and mate fidelity
22 Migration
23 Mortality
24 Effects of pesticides
25 Conclusions

Appendix 1: Finding nests
Appendix 2: Persecution of Sparrowhawks
Appendix 3: Procedure for analysis of nest spacing
Appendix 4: Causes and diagnosis of nest failure
Bibliography
Tables 1-63
Index