He caused a lot of commotion when he ascended . . .

A large flock of finches feeding on a nearby tree exploded in retreat when this guy came into view. He was only there for about 20 seconds, but enough time to capture him with my telephoto.



Thanks for looking!

Peter

[photolady95]

Nice capture. But are you sure in your identification? It looks just like the one I took today which is a Cooper's Hawk. A Cooper's Hawk's head is larger than the Sharp - Shinned Hawk.

Here's a discription of Sharp-Shinned Hawk from Cornell's bird identification book online:

Sharp-shinned Hawk, Identification, All About Birds - Cornell Lab of Ornithology

[Petermgr]

Nice capture. But are you sure in your identification? It looks just like the one I took today which is a Cooper's Hawk. A Cooper's Hawk's head is larger than the Sharp - Shinned Hawk.

Here's a discription of Sharp-Shinned Hawk from Cornell's bird identification book online:

Sharp-shinned Hawk, Identification, All About Birds - Cornell Lab of Ornithology

Thanks photolady,

I'm quite sure it is a Sharp-shinned Hawk. They are common in this area (southern interior of British Columbia) and they tend to follow the migration of the sparrows and finches. Apparently they are difficult to identify when comparing to the Cooper's Hawk, however the Cooper's Hawk have a quite a long tail, where this one does not.

Regardless, it sure is a nice treat to see one so close

Peter

[photolady95]

I just wondered cause yours looks a lot like mine but the description I'm seeing at Cornell on the Sharp-Shinned, shows an orangish breast, and mine doesn't have an orangish breast.

Here's the link to mine. Perhaps it is the same bird.

https://www.pentaxforums.com/forums/post-your-photos/88684-nature-coopers-hawk-i-think.html

[stevebrot]

Ha! Ha! The debate rages on! Sharp-shinned...Coopers...Sharp-shinned...Coopers...

There was a thread on this site a couple of years ago regarding a similar bird photographed in southern Ontario. The discussion carried on for some weeks with the final vote going to Coopers.

In my part of the world Coopers are more common, but Sharp-shinned are also part of the mix for most of the year. The expert birders in my group of friends are usually shy of doing an ID between the two species based on a single photo alone. Based on the relatively short, squared-off tail my vote goes to Sharp-shinned.

Steve

[PentX Girl]

Sharp looking Sharp-shinned Hawk. The squared tail gives it away

[Petermgr]

Ha! Ha! The debate rages on! Sharp-shinned...Coopers...Sharp-shinned...Coopers...

There was a thread on this site a couple of years ago regarding a similar bird photographed in southern Ontario. The discussion carried on for some weeks with the final vote going to Coopers.

In my part of the world Coopers are more common, but Sharp-shinned are also part of the mix for most of the year. The expert birders in my group of friends are usually shy of doing an ID between the two species based on a single photo alone. Based on the relatively short, squared-off tail my vote goes to Sharp-shinned.

Steve

Thanks Steve,

Think it's great that we (photolady and I) got some good closeups. Sure wouldn't want to guess these breeds from a distance!

Peter

[Petermgr]

Sharp looking Sharp-shinned Hawk. The squared tail gives it away

Thanks Jan