Accipiter nisus
Meneer Zjeroen · Betuwe, Gelderland
The sparrowhawk (Accipiter nisus) is a small hawk that nests in Georgia and can be seen there year-round. In spring and autumn, some sparrowhawks also pass through Georgia. Females are noticeably larger than males. The goshawk (Accipiter gentilis) is a different species.
Identification
It is a small hawk with short, broad wings, a long tail and yellow eyes. The male is bluish grey above and has reddish bars below. The female is larger than the male and is brown. During migration, it may be mistaken for a sparrowhawk or, because of its size, a goshawk.
Appearance: It has short, rounded wings and a long tail with an almost straight end. In flight, it alternates between flapping its wings and gliding. Its wings are not pointed like a falcon’s. Adults have yellow or orange eyes and long, yellow legs. Birds of this species are about 29–41 cm long. Males are about 29–34 cm long and weigh 105–196 g; females are 35–41 cm long and weigh 185–350 g. The size difference between males and females is one of the largest among birds of prey.
The male has a bluish-gray back and reddish streaks on its cheeks and chest. From a distance, its underside may look uniformly orange. The female’s back is dark brown or gray-brown, with brown streaks underneath. The eyebrow-like stripe above her eye is often more noticeable. A young bird resembles the female, but its streaks are broader or break up into spots, and its eyes are a paler yellow. A young bird usually lacks a dark stripe down the middle of its throat—a feature of the bird called kortskvita.
The Levant sparrowhawk (Accipiter brevipes; now Tachyspiza brevipes according to the IOC) is listed in the 2024 checklist as a migratory bird that breeds in Georgia. The 2014 Red List, which remains in force, assesses it as facing a risk of extinction. Compared with the sparrowhawk, it has more pointed wings. The wingtips are dark, and there are fewer bars on the undersides of the wings. Adults have dark eyes, not yellow ones. During migration, Levant sparrowhawks often fly in groups, while sparrowhawks usually fly alone. The goshawk (Accipiter gentilis; Astur gentilis according to the IOC) is more heavily built than the sparrowhawk, with broad wings, a white stripe above the eye and a more rounded tail. At a glance or from a distance, a large female sparrowhawk can be mistaken for a goshawk, but it has a lighter build. A young goshawk has lengthwise marks on its underside, while a young sparrowhawk has crosswise bars. The northern shikra (Accipiter badius) is listed in the same checklist as an occasional visitor to Georgia; identifying it in the wild requires specialist knowledge. A young peregrine falcon (Falco peregrinus) can resemble a sparrowhawk when flying fast and straight. Seen clearly, its pointed wings and short tail relative to its body size set it apart. The kestrel and the ageri are falcons; both have pointed wings. This atlas has a separate page for the goshawk, but not yet for the Levant sparrowhawk or the shikra.
The sparrowhawk nests in forests and also hunts along forest edges, in parks and gardens, and in green spaces in settlements. It commonly nests in Georgia and can also be seen here as it passes through and in winter. It is also found in the Batsara-Babaneuri Protected Areas. In autumn, you can watch sparrowhawks passing through near Batumi, Sakhalvasho and Shuamta. They often fly alone and low, making it hard to count them all. The map below shows only publicly posted records with photos on iNaturalist. It does not show everywhere the sparrowhawk occurs. If a region has no records, or only one, that does not mean the bird is absent there.
The Eurasian sparrowhawk map uses public iNaturalist photo observations in Georgia. Regions come from the records-by-region table: only confirmed status counts as distribution; otherwise a region is not treated as part of the range. Record counts reflect observation effort, not population density.
Data: Reptiles.ge + iNaturalist · Methodology
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The sparrowhawk mainly hunts birds. Males usually catch small birds, such as sparrows. Larger females can catch birds the size of a thrush, and sometimes even pigeons. Sparrowhawks occasionally catch small mammals, too. They often catch their prey with a sudden, fast attack from cover, at the edge of a forest or in a garden where small birds gather.
Related guides
Questions
Short answers to the most important questions about Eurasian sparrowhawk.
Yes. As of 2024, it was confirmed that this bird lives in Georgia year-round and is also seen during migration.
It occurs in forests, at forest edges, in parks and in settlements. It hunts small birds. It has also been recorded in the Batsara-Babaneuri protected areas. In autumn, it may be seen along the bird migration route near Batumi. The map shows only publicly available sightings, not its full range.
It has short, broad wings, a long tail and yellow eyes. In flight, it beats its wings twice, then glides. The male has a bluish back and reddish stripes on its chest. The female is larger and brown. The kortskvita has dark eyes and pointed wings. The large hawk is much bulkier.
Animals of this species are about 29–41 cm long. Females are noticeably larger than males: females weigh about 185–350 g, while males weigh 105–196 g.
It mainly eats small birds.
According to the 2024 list, it lives here year-round and is also seen passing through in spring and autumn.
Yes. In the 2024 list, YR-R means the bird lives there year-round and nests there.
It poses no danger to people. Globally, it is rated LC. The 2024 list also marks it LC for Georgia, but that rating is based on an update that has not yet been approved. The sparrowhawk is not included in Georgia’s current 2014 Red List. Do not catch wild birds.
References
Species profiles are compiled from peer-reviewed literature and established biodiversity databases, and are reviewed as new taxonomic and conservation data become available.
Prepared by the Reptiles.ge editorial team from the sources listed here.
