Quantcast

Sharp-shinned Hawk

Accipiter striatusOrder: FALCONIFORMESFamily: Kites, Eagles and Hawks (Accipitridae)
Sharp-shinned Hawk Head Illustration

Head

  • Bill Shape: Hooked
  • Eye Color: Variable, becoming redder with age. Grayish at hatching, then yellow, through bright orange to ruby red; yellow to orange in juveniles. Birds with red irises are likely to be in at least their third calendar year.
  • Head Pattern: Eyeline, Plain
  • Crown Color: Dark Gray
  • Forehead Color: Blue-gray
  • Nape Color: Gray
  • Throat Color: White
  • Cere color: Yellow
Sharp-shinned Hawk Body Illustration

Body

  • Length Range: 25-36 cm (10-14 in)
  • Weight: 102 g (3.6 oz)
  • Size: Size 3. Medium (9 - 16 in)
  • Color: White, Brown, Gray, Rufous or Rust, Buff
  • Underparts: White with red-brown bars.
  • Upperparts: Blue-gray
  • Back Pattern: Solid
  • Belly Pattern: Barred or banded
  • Breast Pattern: Barred or banded
Sharp-shinned Hawk Flight Illustration

Flight

  • Flight Pattern: Buoyant flight with several rapid wing beats between glides.
  • Wingspan Range: 51-71 cm (20-28 in)
  • Wing Shape: Broad-Wings
  • Tail Shape: Squared Tail
  • Tail Pattern: Narrow black crossbars.
  • Upper Tail: White with black bands.
  • Under Tail: White with black bands.
  • Leg Color: Yellow
.
Bird database and its related content, illustrations and media is Copyright © 2002 - 2007  Whatbird.com
All rights reserved. No part of this web site may be reproduced without written permission from Mitch Waite Group.
 Privacy Policy.
Percevia® Registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
Bird Call Credits: The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Martyn Stewart, http://www.naturesound.org, Redmond, Washington USA. The reuse or copying of bird calls in this database is strictly forbidden.
Family Hawk (Accipitridae)_blue
Species Accipiter striatus
Length10 - 14 Inches
Wingspan24 Inches

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

Buoyant flight with several rapid wing beats between glides.
Sharp-shinned Hawk Body Illustration
● Range & Habitat: Sharp-shinned Hawk: Breeds throughout the U.S. as far north as Canada. Spends winters from northern U.S. to Argentina. Found in deciduous, coniferous, or mixed forests.
BreedingMonogamous, Solitary nester
PopulationCommon to fairly common
MigrationSome migrate
Weight3.6 Ounces