Sharp-shinned Hawk

Accipiter striatusOrder: FALCONIFORMES Family: Kites, Eagles and Hawks (Accipitridae)

Codes: Common Name: SSHA Scientific Name: ACCSTR ITIS Taxonomic No.: 175304

Sharp-shinned Hawk: The adult Sharp-shinned Hawk has blue-gray upperparts and rufous bars on white underparts. The eyes are dark red. Legs and feet are yellow.

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Overview

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.

Range and 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.

Topo Map: Hawk-like Body

Listen to Call

Voice Text

"kik-kik-kik"

Interesting Facts

Adult Sharp-shinned Hawks pass food to their young in mid-air. They will hover briefly and kick the prey outward just as the fledgling arrives.

Large numbers are seen during migration. Over 11,000 were seen on one October day at Cape May Point, New Jersey.

Their common name comes from the very thin, exposed lower leg of this hawk.

A group of hawks has many collective nouns, including a "boil", "knot", "spiraling", "stream", and "tower" of hawks.

Bird Term Glossary

Author

Gary Owen Dick

Related Birds

Northern Harrier
Cooper's Hawk
Northern Goshawk
Merlin
American Kestrel

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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.

Sharp-shinned Hawk

● 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.

● 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

Hawk-like Body

Underparts

Belly, undertail coverts, chest, flanks, and foreneck.

Upperparts

Back, rump, hindneck, wings, and crown.

4 and 6 letter alpha codes

The four letter common name alpha code is is derived from the first two letters of the common first name and the first two letters of common last name. The six letter species name alpha code is derived from the first three letters of the scientific name (genus) and the first three letters of the scientific name (species). See (1) below for the rules used to create the codes..

Four-letter (for English common names) and six-letter (for scientific names) species alpha codes were developed by Pyle and DeSante (2003, North American Bird-Bander 28:64-79) to reflect A.O.U. taxonomy and nomenclature (A.O.U. 1998) as modified by Supplements 42 (Auk 117:847-858, 2000) and 43 (Auk 119:897-906, 2002). The list has been updated by Pyle and DeSante to reflect changes reported by the A.O.U from 2003 through 2006.

Field Guide to Birds of North America