A divebombing hawk has caused mayhem in a Hertfordshire village as it targets unsuspecting tall men, swooping down to attack their heads. The bird, which is usually native to Brazil, Argentina and Chile, is now responsible for an estimated 20 violent attacks over the last two weeks after a “sudden change in behaviour”.

The hostile Harris’s hawk has been swooping on residents at Flamstead and seems to be targeting tall men. One of the victims is six foot four retiree Roy Lambden, 68, who was putting out his bins when he was attacked a week ago.

A woman has told how her husband is the latest person to have been attacked by a Harris’s hawk terrorising a village.