The Shikra at close quarters

I have seen this bird many times, perched on the fencing of the small grove adjoining our house in Faridabad. And always it flew away as soon as it saw me looking at it. Its really quite small, hardly bigger than a pigeon and I am glad we could catch him recently 

Male Shikra, Faridabad

Also known as the Indian sparrowhawk or little banded goshawk. Although widely distributed, such close sightings are rare and it must have been drawn by something in the surroundings 

The female was also nearby, with yellow eyes in place of the ruby red of the male ...