Hawk kills rare swallow in Sweden

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STOCKHOLM, Sweden, Nov. 23 (UPI) -- Swedish bird watchers said they were excited to spot an American Cliff Swallow in the sky until a hawk swooped down and killed the bird.

Kalle Lofberg, one of about 50 birdwatchers who gathered to watch the swallow, said it was the only bird of its species ever spotted in Sweden and the crowd of watchers grew steadily in the course of three days this week -- until the bird met with its untimely end, The Local.se reported Friday.

"I was watching the whole thing through my camera," Lofberg said. "Someone shouted 'There's a sparrow hawk' but I thought it was far away. And then, the sky was empty."

Lofberg said he went through his pictures and discovered he had taken a snapshot of the moment the hawk grabbed the swallow.

The Aftonbladet newspaper said the birds normally migrate to South America and have only been spotted 10 times in Europe.