I was going to call this topic ‘Birds’ but may as well include other creatures. Anyway I saw a sparrowhawk in a garden backing onto Blythe Hill Fields last week. Maybe not strictly SE23 but it is probably no respecter of postcode boundaries. Some other less common birds spotted in and near our garden in HOP include bullfinch, greenfinch, goldfinch, jay, green woodpecker (often heard ‘yaffling’), great spotted woodpecker, blackcap (last few weeks – sounds like nightingale on ‘uppers’), wren, blue, great, long-tailed & coal tits, whitethroat, heron, waxwing (one cold winter), dunnock. Further afield: raven (high over Greenwich Park – a pair tumbling unmistakeably, maybe on passage somewhere), red-backed shrike (Greenwich Peninsula a few years back, thanks to a bunch of ‘twitchers’). I wonder what indigenous species the parakeets displace? I can’t recall seeing a sparrow lately.
Wildlife [2016 edition]
Some of the birds you list are actually very common: jays, woodpeckers, wrens, green and blue tits are very common and regular garden inhabitants in this part of the world. Goldfinch are very common in parks and similar open ground. All our parks with even small bodies of water tend to have resident heron.
It’s very depressing walking though the woods in Bekenham Place Park and hearing nothing but the screeching of the parakeets.
I love the parakeets 
we have a robin who lives in our garden and I always think it’s weird to see Robins when it’s not winter. Ridiculous I know! I am always amazed at how many birds there are in my garden here compared to where we used to live in London.
Did you know that many of the robins you see in summer are not the same as in winter? Large numbers swap over on their migrations.
The parakeets are very destructive, unfortunately, often stripping ornamental trees bare. And a whole flock of them are LOUD. They are pretty, though.
We’re starting to build a nice collection of wildlife topics, including:
and
So I think it might make sense to rename this particular topic to “Calling all Twitchers of SE23” or perhaps “Birds of SE23 and beyond”, so it can focus on airborne wildlife, and the other threads can focus on the land wildlife? Up to you.
@anon5422159 I think the danger is we then end up with hundreds of threads. Can we not merge SE23 wildlife with Kids in Cafe’s? 
One umbrella topic would make sense I think, don’t mind what it’s called!
Okay, I won’t dictate how we organise our birds and bees on the forum
I forgot another existing wildlife topic, which may be of interest:
We get quite a few nuthatches also.
Yes and why not just put all the local restaurant topics in one big thread too?
I saw what I think was a female Sparrowhawk chasing a pigeon in and around or garden yesterday. Fantastic sight.
Yes the females are pretty big and spectacular! And according to BBC
Springwatch a while back, urban gardens suit their penchant for the element
of surprise in catching their prey – which can be quite large, eg
woodpigeons. Lots of gruesome examples on YouTube!
It really was one of those ‘did I really see that’ moments.
Now, I realise I may be going round the bend but I was woken up by a pheasant this morning. I didnt see it but heard it clearly. Is there any other bird around these parts that sounds like a pheasant?
I ran into a pair of pheasants in Beckenham Place Park last week so highly plausible. Given the amount of woodland we have in this area, doubly plausible. I seem to remember someone posting a picture of a pheasant in the street in SE23 a few years ago, on another forum.
Thank goodness, I did wonder if I was going nuts, frock and all.
Have you considered accessorising the frock with nuts? Could be a good look for you.
I had nuts but they were removed during my wedding 15 years ago a s my other half felt they were no longer needed.
Pheasant?
checks gamebird and waterfowl open season dates
We’re in. I’ll get me yellows and my Purdys.
Back of the line sunshine 
Excellent!
Ha. I live on Sunderland Road. And I’m going clay shooting this weekend. I see a convergence of opportunity.
Wonder if that’s the one I saw dead in the Savacentre car park…
Picking up from conversations on the other local forum (where I am not a member so can’t reply):
@michael - There are lots of owls in Sydenham Woods and some also (if memory serves) in Sydenham Wells Park. Hearing an owl in the evening is actually not uncommon, if you keep your ears open.
Someone on the other forum mentioned hearing a parrot on Sunderland Road. Whites Pet Centre in Sydenham (at the junction with Mayow Road) lost their large grey parrot last year so maybe people could keep their eyes peeled for it, in case its theirs.
Agreed. Have been hearing an owl quite often recently, always cheers me to hear it. Almost certainly around thanks to the local woodland.
Really sorry to hear that! I think it must have been their green (or blue?) parrot that I had an amusing conversation with a few months ago. “Hello!” I said. “Allo!” it screeched back. “Hello!” I said. “Allo!” it screeched back.
This went on a few more times. Then, having spent a minute marvelling at this bird, I turned around and walked off. From behind me came the screech, “Goodbye!”
I don’t often laugh out loud in public but I did then.
And here’s a female, later that year in Burghill Road
We also found some pheasant feathers in Dacres Wood Nature reserve, most likely sparrowhawk kill
On which subject, the Friends of Dacres Wood and Friends of Mayow Park are having another combined bid walk, April 9th, 7.30 starting at Dacres Wood
You sure it wasn’t a French pheasant?
Started to see the Sparrowhawk quite a lot, well, the flash that is the Sparrowhawk. Impressive bird.
Can’t be. Looks nothing like a sparrowhawk.
https://i.ytimg.com/vi/M2nuOneeQ5M/hqdefault.jpg
I say I say I say boy.