Thursday, December 06, 2012

Cooper's Hawk?

Andy | Thursday, December 06, 2012 | Best Blogger Tips

If you can identify this hawk please leave a comment and let me know. I've seen it here before but this is the first time he has stayed long enough to for me to get his photograph.

14 comments:

  1. I think it could also be an Sharp-shinned Hawk. Looks a lot like a Cooper's hawk but is smaller and have a more square tail while the Cooper has a round tail. If you are wondering why somebody from the Netherlands know this. My uncle went every year to the USA to study birds in the fields everywhere. When he died I inherited his bird books with also the Audubon society field guide to North american birds. Used it twice myself to identify a blue jay and a red cardinal but I am not so in birds that I know a lot of it. But a beautiful bird it is for sure.

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  2. Hmm. They do look so much alike, but that tail seems more sharp shinned to me. Either way, it's a beautiful bird. I wish I could get a close up like that!

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  3. By the looks of the head it does appear to be a Cooper's Hawk...a very beautiful bird...of which you got a great shot of! I am always drawn to their eyes. I too am not familiar with different species...but this is a gorgeous bird indeed.

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  4. Lucky you! I can never seem to get a good hawk picture! Love the light in this one. Beautiful photos, Andy!

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  5. That hawk has posed very nicely for you. It must have know you were there. They don't miss much.

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  6. My birding knowledge is woeful, but it looks very similar to a Cooper's hawk indeed (we get them here), from head-up. Regardless, it's a beautiful capture of a beautiful bird!

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  7. A lovely shot, Andy. I'm thinking sharp-shinned.. according to this site. http://askanaturalist.com/cooper%E2%80%99s-hawk-or-sharp-shinned/

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  8. This is a wonderful shot! Lucky you! I wish I could add to the identification. I've checked a couple of books and not come up with enough to be definite. I do notice, however, that Cooper's hawks don't seem to have those gorgeous yellow eyes you've caught (at least not in my books). An immature red tailed hawk does have yellow eyes, banded tail, and whitish outer wing. Whatever it is it's gorgeous!

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  9. There, you've probably solved your mystery by now, Andy, and it is either a sharp-shinned hawk or a Cooper's, but I just want to say your photo is super. The face is so sharp, but I can't see its shins.
    K

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  10. I'm not great at hawk ID, but it's a fantastic shot!

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  11. Thanks everyone for the help with the ID of the hawk. Because of the squirrels and the birds at my bird feeder, I think he will be here for awhile.

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  12. I think you're spot on... looks like a Cooper's Hawk to me. Could you send him my way though? I need a natural predator for the squirrels who have been getting into my attic. :S

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  13. That is a beautiful and unique model!:)

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