Buzzards on the attack

Two joggers preyed on by big birds

You hardly expect it to happen in Britain, but every now and then the birds really do strike back. Solicitor Stuart Urquhart, 36, is the second person to be attacked by the birds of prey in a week. The first, Paul Powell, had a similar incident during a run in Gloucester.

Urquhart's injuries included three six-inch slash wounds on his head after the bird took a swoop at him in Cornwall. He claims the four-foot bird came from nowhere to attack.

"I thought somebody had thrown something at me because I felt a sharp pain at the back of my head but I couldn't see anyone," he told reporters.

"I carried on a few paces and then saw blood running down me and noticed a buzzard flying off into the trees. It was the last thing I expected to happen. As a jogger I suppose you run the risk of being attacked by a dog, but this was very strange."

The RSPB admit that buzzards will attack when young are in the nest nearby as a defensive measure to protect their young. "But it is extremely unusual for a buzzard to attack a human being," said RSPB spokesman Peter Exley.

The experts recommend avoiding the area for a few weeks until the chicks have grown up and flown away. With more than 40,000 breeding pairs of buzzards around the UK, it pays to watch your surroundings...