Sharp-shinned Hawk
(Accipiter striatus)
Conservation • Description • Habitat • Ecology • Distribution • Taxonomy
Conservation Status |
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| IUCN Red List | LC - Least Concern |
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| NatureServe | N5B, N5N - Secure Breeding and Nonbreeding SNRB - Unranked Breeding |
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| Minnesota | not listed |
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Description |
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Sharp-shinned Hawk is a small hawk, the size of an American Robin (male) or Rock Pigeon (female). The cap and upper parts are bluish-gray. The underparts are white with thin, horizontal, reddish-brown barring. Immature individuals are brown above with dark brown, vertical streaks on the breast and belly. The tail is relatively long and square at the end with a broad terminal band. It is bluish-gray above with black bars, pale below with dark bars. |
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Size |
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Male Female |
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Voice |
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A high-pitched kik-kik-kik-kik lasting 2 to 4 seconds. |
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Similar Species |
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Cooper’s Hawk (Accipiter cooperii) is larger, 15″ to 19″ in length. The nape of the neck is pale. The tail is longer, rounded at the end, and has a wider terminal white band. |
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Habitat |
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Forests, especially dense, moist coniferous forests; large woodlots; and bogs |
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Ecology |
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Migration |
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March to mid-May and August to November. |
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Nesting |
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Food |
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Small birds |
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Distribution |
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Occurrence |
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Common migrant, uncommon breeder |
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Maps |
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The Minnesota Ornithologists’ Union All Seasons Species Occurrence Map |
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Taxonomy |
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| Class | Aves (birds) | ||
Order |
Accipitriformes (hawks, eagles, kites, and allies) | ||
Family |
Accipitridae (eagles, hawks, and kites) | ||
Subfamily |
Accipitrinae | ||
Genus |
Accipiter (accipiters) | ||
Subordinate Taxa |
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Hispaniola Sharp-shinned Hawk (Accipiter striatus striatus) Mexican Sharp-shinned Hawk (Accipiter striatus suttoni) Northern Sharp-shinned Hawk (Accipiter striatus velox) Northwest Coast Sharp-shinned Hawk (Accipiter striatus perobscurus) Puerto Rican Sharp-shinned Hawk (Accipiter striatus venator) Sharp-shinned Hawk (Accipiter striatus fringilloides)
The following South American subspecies are often treated treated as separate species based on morphology, geographic isolation, “and probably behaviour”. White-breasted Hawk (Accipiter striatus chionogaster = Accipiter chionogaster) White-breasted Hawk (Accipiter striatus madrensis = Accipiter chionogaster madrensis) Plain-breasted Hawk (Accipiter striatus ventralis = Accipiter ventralis) Rufous-thighed Hawk (Accipiter striatus erythronemius = Accipiter erythronemius) |
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Synonyms |
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Visitor Photos |
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Share your photo of this bird. |
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Ida Marie |
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… one that I took the other day here in Fergus Falls Mn off my back deck. |
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Dan W. Andree |
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Juvenile Sharp-shinned hawk... I seen it late April 2022 in rural Norman Co. Mn. but since seems to have moved on. Smaller than a typical hawk but maybe a little bigger and stockier than an American Kestrel. There were a couple of them I noticed in a wooded/brushy area that contained water and a lot of frogs croaking. The two juvenile hawks I seen in that area were hunting frogs. Seen one capture a frog and tried to get my camera focused on it but it ate it rather quickly. It was in some thick branches so hard to get an open shot for a photo with the frog. The hawk would perch in a tree above the wetland areas and wait and watch until it seen an opportunity to catch a frog for a meal. Once it flew down to catch one it came back up into a nearby tree, perched and ate it. But there were so many branches etc. to try find an opening to photograph or film them with their catch. Other than the kestrels this was the smallest hawk I have ever seen. |
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Pokey |
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Looks beautiful! |
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Laurie Wachholz |
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MinnesotaSeasons.com Photos |
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Slideshows |
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| Sharp-shinned Hawk Allen Chartier |
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| Sharp-shinned Hawk Andy Reago & Chrissy McClarren |
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| Sharp-shinned Hawk JMC Nature Photos |
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Visitor Videos |
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Share your video of this bird. |
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| This button not working for you? Simply email us at info@MinnesotaSeasons.com. Attach a video, a YouTube link, or a cloud storage link. |
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Other Videos |
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| Sharp-shinned Hawk in flight LabofOrnithology |
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About
Published on Jul 22, 2015 The Sharp-shinned Hawk is a very small, stocky raptor of woodland habitats throughout North America. Like other Accipiters, this species ambushes its songbird prey (often at backyard bird feeders), and uses short, rounded wings to quickly maneuever through dense vegetation. Although secretive during the summer, this species is easily observed during the autumn as it passes over established "hawk watch" sites on its southbound migration. ML Video #407574. Recorded by Timothy Barksdale. For more bird videos and sounds, explore the Macaulay Library at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology visit: http://macaulaylibrary.org For additional identification and life history information visit: http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/sharp-shinned_hawk/id |
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| KIBS: Sharp-shinned Hawk Aaron Given |
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About
Published on Nov 12, 2013 Kiawah Island bird banders take a moment to share the remarkable adaptations of a Sharp-shinned Hawk. Check out our blog at: http://kiawahislandbanding.blogspot.com/ |
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| Sharp-shinned Hawk SmithsonianMBC |
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About
Uploaded on Feb 23, 2011 Sharp-shinned hawk video recorded by George Jameson. |
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| Sharp Dancing Berkutchi |
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About
Uploaded on Jan 14, 2008 A male sharp-shinned hawk ( Accipiter striatus )torments house sparrows caught in a trap as he attempts to get a feathery snack on a sunny winter's day on the Colorado prairie. Learn more about the Raptor Education Foundation at www.usaref.org. Thank you. |
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Visitor Sightings |
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Report a sighting of this bird. |
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| This button not working for you? Simply email us at info@MinnesotaSeasons.com. Be sure to include a location. |
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| Ida Marie 7/29/2016 |
Location: Fergus Falls, MN … one that I took the other day here in Fergus Falls Mn off my back deck. |
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| Dan W. Andree Late April 2022 |
Location: rural Norman Co. Mn. I seen it late April 2022 in rural Norman Co. Mn. but since seems to have moved on. Smaller than a typical hawk but maybe a little bigger and stockier than an American Kestrel. There were a couple of them I noticed in a wooded/brushy area that contained water and a lot of frogs croaking. The two juvenile hawks I seen in that area were hunting frogs. Seen one capture a frog and tried to get my camera focused on it but it ate it rather quickly. It was in some thick branches so hard to get an open shot for a photo with the frog. The hawk would perch in a tree above the wetland areas and wait and watch until it seen an opportunity to catch a frog for a meal. Once it flew down to catch one it came back up into a nearby tree, perched and ate it. But there were so many branches etc. to try find an opening to photograph or film them with their catch. Other than the kestrels this was the smallest hawk I have ever seen. |
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| Pokey 1/30/2022 |
Location: Red Wing, MN Looks beautiful! |
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MinnesotaSeasons.com Sightings |
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