[Birdtalk] Sharp-shinned Hawk revisited

[Utah Birds]

<forwarded from Jerry Liguori>

A friend at HawkWatch e-mailed me this photo (attached) [here's a link]

http://utahbirds.org/hotlinephotos/2007/Accipiter.htm

and said the consensus on Utah birds a few weeks ago was that it was a Cooper's Hawk. He is convinced it is a Sharp-shinned Hawk and asked me about it.. Absolutely no doubt about it.....definitely an adult sharp-shinned. Small head/bill, large eye appearance, narrow legs and small feet, short narrow square-tipped tail that shows no graduation. rufous streaked cheek and dense barring to the underside. Male Cooper's can have dense barring but it will more orangish and with a dark red eye such as this, male Cooper's will have a gray cheek and nape. Not one Cooper's trait on this bird, it is perfect for Sharp-shinned.

please post this if it will help people since adult accipiters are so 
similar and easily confused.

take care,
Jerry







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