Red-thighed sparrowhawk facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Red-thighed sparrowhawk |
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| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Accipiter
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| Species: |
erythropus
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| Subspecies | |
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| Synonyms | |
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Nisus erythropus Hartlaub, 1855 |
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The Red-thighed Sparrowhawk (Accipiter erythropus) is a small bird of prey. It's also known as the Red-legged Sparrowhawk or Western Little Sparrowhawk. This bird lives in western and central Africa. It belongs to the Accipitridae family, which includes eagles, hawks, and kites.
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About the Red-thighed Sparrowhawk
This sparrowhawk is quite small, about the size of a Dove. It has a special pattern on its tail.
Red-thighed Sparrowhawks show sexual dimorphism. This means males and females look different.
- Males of the main group (called the nominate subspecies) have very dark grey feathers on their backs. They have a white crescent shape on their lower back. This white patch is easy to see when they fly. Their dark grey tail has three broken white stripes. Their cheeks are blackish, but their throat is white. The rest of their belly is pinkish-white. Their eyes are bright red with a red ring around them. The cere (the fleshy part above the beak) is orange-red, and their legs are bright orange-yellow.
- Males of the A.e. zenkeri group have reddish-brown feathers on their belly. They also have clearer white spots on their tail.
- Females are much larger than males. They have browner feathers on their backs and a more brownish-orange eye.
- Young birds (juveniles) usually have brown stripes on their belly, sometimes reaching up to their chest.
These birds are about 23–28 cm (9.1–11.0 in) long. Their wings can spread out to about 40 cm (16 in).
Where They Live: Distribution and Subspecies
There are two main types, or subspecies, of the Red-thighed Sparrowhawk. They live in different parts of Africa.
- Accipiter erythropus erythropus: You can find this group from Senegal and Gambia in the west, all the way to Nigeria.
- Accipiter erythropus zenkeri: This group lives from Cameroon in the west to western Uganda. They are also found in central Democratic Republic of the Congo and Gabon, south to northern Angola.
Their Home: Habitat
The Red-thighed Sparrowhawk likes to live in lowland rainforests. You can also find them along the edges of forests and in open areas within the forest. They sometimes live in older secondary forest, which is forest that has grown back after being cut down.
Daily Life: Habits and Reproduction
The Red-thighed Sparrowhawk is a shy bird. It is also crepuscular, meaning it is most active during twilight hours, like dawn and dusk. During the day, it usually sits quietly inside the forest.
What They Eat
Their main food is small birds, even up to the size of Pigeons. They also hunt lizards, amphibians (like frogs), and insects. They catch their prey by making quick, short flights from a perch in the lower parts of the forest. Sometimes, these sparrowhawks hunt together in pairs. They work as a team to bother groups of different bird species, making it easier to catch one.
Reproduction
Not much is known about how these birds raise their young. They build a small nest out of sticks in the fork of a tree. There is one record of a family of five birds found in Liberia in December 1996.
