Sharp-shinned Hawk

Sharp-shinned Hawk

Sharp-shinned Hawk: Small hawk with blue-gray upperparts and rufous bars on white underparts. Eyes are dark red. Wings are short and rounded. Tail is long and squared with heavy bars. Legs and feet are yellow. Flight consists of rapid wing beats followed by a short glide. Often soars on thermals.

● Song: "kik-kik-kik"

● Foraging & Feeding: Sharp-shinned Hawk: Diet consists of mostly small birds, but includes small mammals, lizards, and insects; female takes larger prey than male.

● Breeding & nesting: Sharp-shinned Hawk: Four to five brown marked, white to light blue eggs are laid in a large nest built of twigs and built on a low branch in a conifer or deciduous tree. Incubation is carried out by both parents and ranges from 34 to 35 days.

● Similar species: Sharp-shinned Hawk: Cooper's Hawk is larger and has a rounded tail.

Flight Pattern