I went there again today (just home again) and with some difficulty found the Collared Sparrowhawk’s
nest again. Again I only had about 10 minutes available. As I arrived I could see two chicks in the nest, shuffling around. One was seen biting and pulling at the tail end of the other (though more in a playful way than malice). I thought they look ready to
leave. Quite scruffy and the tail noticeably short compared to an adult. Whilst I watched one flew off the nest and perched in a tree about 30 metres away, Then I could see that there was a third perched in another tree on the other side of the path. That
one also had incomplete feathering on the head. One flew in from somewhere else. I think also the second one left the nest to also perch nearby. When I left, the nest appeared to be empty. I did not see the parents but could hear them calling somewhere nearby.
The chicks were also calling. The sound is almost the same as for Brown Goshawks, somewhat less volume and maybe a bit faster. I still have not seen the Goshawks there.
So fledging date maybe today or yesterday.
Philip
From: Alison
Sent: Saturday, 6 January, 2018 10:24 AM
To:
Subject: [canberrabirds] Collared sparrowhawk chicks at ANBG
I had been watching the Collared Sparrowhawks visiting a nest at the Botanic Gardens back in October but there didn’t seem to be any chicks. They now have four chicks in the nest.
Alison Milton
