So it was a hawk after all. I see these near our place, usually hanging out by the first (i.e. south) Donghe bridge, but I've never seen one close enough to identify its markings. They tend to fly much closer to the ground and for shorter periods. He must have been perching in a nearby tree.

What an experience. It beats the heck out of sitting around watching TV. How many times do you catch a hawk in one lifetime?

Less than they catch chickens!

Yeah, they are actually quite common. After i released him up around the 100km mark, i drove back and saw another one (surely not the same one) just as i got back into Xing Chang.
Here's the chick that was attacked - a mintue later and i doubt he would have survived - poor darling