Birds · Accipitriformes · Accipitridae

Eurasian Sparrowhawk

Accipiter nisus

Least Concern

The species is abundant and widely distributed; it faces no significant short-term risk. See full glossary

It shows one of the greatest differences in size between the sexes of any bird of prey in the world, with females up to 50% heavier than males.

Weight

110 g – 342 g

Size

29 cm – 41 cm

Lifespan

4 years

Diet

Carnivore

Feeds mainly on other animals.

Activity

Diurnal

Active mainly during the day.

Social structure

Solitary

Lives and hunts alone, joining others only to breed.

Sighting difficulty

Easy

Fun facts

That difference lets the pair specialise on prey of different sizes and compete less with one another.
It feeds mainly on small birds caught in agile pursuit through the vegetation.
It lives in woodland and wooded country of Europe, North Africa and western Asia.

Skeleton type: Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (bird)
Habitat & environment: Woodland and wooded country of Europe, North Africa and western Asia
Birth weight: Born altricial and covered in down
Size at birth: Born altricial
Sexual maturity: 1-2 years; many females already breed in their first year
Gestation / incubation: 33 days
Litter / clutch size: 4 to 5 eggs per clutch
Lifespan in captivity: Documented record of up to 20.3 years in a ringed bird in the wild