Accipiter Identification

Any thoughts? Sharp-shinned? Cooper's? Something else?

Not the greatest of photos but...

IMAGE LINK: https://flic.kr/p/B5BR​Rq

My vote is a "Coopers Hawk "

Thanks...

That's a tough call. The outer tail feathers look to be as long or longer than the center set which would point to Sharp-shinned hawk. There does seem to be a wide, white terminal band on the tail that is usually associated with Cooper's hawks, but not always. Sharp-shinned hawks are about pigeon sized and Cooper's hawks are about the size of a crow. Just remember males are about 1/3 smaller than females, and western Cooper's are smaller than the eastern Cooper's which means their sizes (Coops and Sharpies) are closer together. I'm leaning toward Sharp-shinned looking at the tail feather length, but with juvie Accipiters it helps to have more than one field mark for ID. It could be entirely possible that the center tail feathers were pulled out and they are growing in, and just appear shorter than normal which would make this a Cooper's hawk. Molt, feather wear, and other factors like individual characteristics can play a role in how a bird looks.

Thanks... I wish I had additional photos that showed more information... however, these are all I have. I know it's a tough call and I hemmed and hawed which I thought it was... I went back and forth just like you and many others... I do recall this bird being about the size of a crow or larger because it caught my attention while it was flying and I was able to track it to it's perch from several hundred yards.... But, that said... It will probably always remain a mystery... At least we can all agree upon the genus...

Thanks again...

Moonshiner wrote in post #17834329
Thanks... I wish I had additional photos that showed more information... however, these are all I have. I know it's a tough call and I hemmed and hawed which I thought it was... I went back and forth just like you and many others... I do recall this bird being about the size of a crow or larger because it caught my attention while it was flying and I was able to track it to it's perch from several hundred yards.... But, that said... It will probably always remain a mystery... At least we can all agree upon the genus...

Thanks again...

If it was the size of a crow then it's a Cooper's hawk. Like I stated above molt can play a large factor in how a bird looks. Cooper's hawks are very common in my area, and Sharp-shinned hawks usually show up occasionally in fall/winter. When seen in the wild I can usually pin them rather quickly for ID, but some birds are more difficult than others due to varying circumstances.