A HAWK THAT terrorised an English village for weeks was attacking people because it was “hormonal”, a falconer has said.

The Harris’s hawk was captured on Thursday after a string of attacks in the Hertfordshire village of Flamstead, with residents having resorted to wearing helmets or hats to protect themselves from the dive-bombing bird of prey.

The male hawk was finally caught by jogger Steve Harris in his garden, with help from falconer Alan Greenhalgh.

Greenhalgh told BBC Breakfast: “If he wanted to grab anybody, he would grab them.

“But all this dive bombing, I think it’s hormonal, courtship because it’s only started happening in the last couple of weeks, breeding season.”

He said the hawk was unharmed and had gone to be rehomed.

“He won’t just be sitting in an aviary, doing nothing, sulking and being a naughty boy,” Greenhalgh said.

“He’s going to be used for flying again and hopefully not attacking people. He shouldn’t do, he won’t do.”

Greenhalgh added that the bird was not happy at being captured.

He told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “He didn’t want to be touched. He was horrible. He had been in the wild since November time so he’s been out a long time.

“He’s been having a great time.”

Some residents had been feeding the bird so “he was as fat as a barrel”, Greenhalgh added.

“He was not in low condition, he was in peak condition. He was very, very fit.”

Physiotherapist Harris said on Thursday that he had caught the hawk by clambering on to his shed and throwing a cage over the bird.

The 40-year-old said: “I had just been out on a run – it was following me for a mile, hopping along all the telegraph poles.

“It came into the garden, and I was holding the cage above my head.

“Eventually it sat in the shed, squawking at me.”
The father of two said he thought his drinks tab at his local pub would be covered for a while after the catch.

Flamstead Parish Council thanked Harris for his “quick thinking”, which saw the bird “trapped quickly and safely”.

Jim Hewitt, 75, also from Flamstead, said he was “delighted” at the hawk’s capture after he was left bloodied when it swooped on him as he went to get milk and a newspaper on Wednesday.

He joked: “I’m delighted we are not going to be invaded.

“I had to be careful and cautious – the sensible thing was to drive to the shop, but I won’t get beaten by a poxy bird.

“I’m relieved that it’s been caught and not had to be put to death or shot.”

A spokesperson for Hertfordshire Constabulary said that while police had not led the response to the attacks, a “low-level presence has been maintained in the area”.

“Rural specialist Special Chief Inspector Steve Meredith has been facilitating communication with expert agencies and local partners to try and bring the situation to a safe conclusion,” the force said.