Accipiter brevipes

The Levant sparrowhawk (Accipiter brevipes) is a small bird of prey. It measures 32–38 cm (13–15 in) in length with a wingspan of 65–75 cm (26–30 in). The female is larger than the male, but the difference is not as marked as with Eurasian sparrowhawk. The adult male is blue-grey above, with dark wingtips, and barred reddish below. The adult female is slate-grey above with darkish wingtips. She is barred reddish brown below, and may show a dark throat line. The juvenile is dark brown above and has dark-streaked underparts. It shows a dark throat line. It breeds in forests from Greece and the Balkans east to southern Russia. It is migratory, wintering from Egypt across to southwestern Iran. It will migrate in large flocks, unlike the more widespread Eurasian sparrowhawk. The Levant sparrowhawk nests in trees, building a new nest, lined with green leaves, each year. The normal clutch is 3–5 eggs. It hunts small birds, insects, rodents, and lizards in woodland or semi-desert areas, relying on surprise as it flies from a perch to catch its prey unaware. This bird is a small raptor with short broad wings and a longish tail, both adaptations to manoeuvring through trees. It is similar to the Eurasian sparrowhawk, but its shorter tail and more pointed wings give it a more falcon-like appearance. The flight of this hawk is a characteristic flap – flap – glide. The call is a sharp kee-wick. First described by Nikolai Alekseevich Severtzov in 1850, the Levant sparrowhawk is a small bird of prey in the genus Accipiter. It is sometimes considered to be a subspecies of the shikra, though it differs in measurements, proportions and plumage, and breeds contiguously with the latter (typically considered a reliable indicator of speciation) over at least part of its range. Along with the shikra, the Chinese sparrowhawk and the Nicobar sparrowhawk, it makes up a complex species group. It is known to have hybridised with the shikra and the Eurasian sparrowhawk. Despite its extensive range, it has no subspecies. The genus name Accipiter is a Latin word meaning 'hawk' (from the Latin word accipere, meaning 'to grasp'). The species name brevipes is a combination of the Latin words brevis, meaning 'short' and pes, meaning 'foot'; this is a reference to the bird's short toes.