Bird Finder for November 20: Sharp-shinned Hawk

Sharp-shinned Hawk
Accipiter striatus

by Andy Rzeznikiewicz

What it looks like: It is a small hawk, around 11 inches in size. Adults have blue-grey above and reddish-brown barring below. Shown on the right in the illustration, the Sharp-shinned has a tail that is square with black and white barring. The tail is sometimes slightly notched. In contrast, Cooper’s Hawk (Accipiter cooperii, on the left) has a rounded tail and is a larger bird. The Sharp-shinned Hawk also appears to have no neck when perched.

Where and how to find it: From fall til the early spring Sharp-shinned Hawks are often found patrolling bird feeding stations and field edges. Often, the easiest way to spot one is to see it attack the birds at your feeding station.

The other option in the fall is to observe it chasing migrating songbirds and often soaring high overhead. Sharpies nest in the deep woods and are not observed very often in breeding season.

Facts about the bird: Sharp-shinned Hawks are pursuit hunters, meaning they chase their prey. About 90 percent of their diet is small songbirds. They can be observed harassing larger birds of prey like Red-Tailed Hawks.

Conservation status: Sharp-shinned Hawk populations used to be in decline because of DDT use but since the ban of DDT in the 1970s they have rebounded and are much more plentiful. Although listed as Least Concern by the IUCN, Sharp-shinned Hawks are officially endangered here in Connecticut (nesting populations).

Illustration by Louis Agassiz Fuertes, from the USFWS, via Carolinabirds.org

Andy Rzeznikiewicz is the sanctuary manager for our northeast Connecticut sanctuaries.