Another Hawk - Eastern Florida (1 Viewer)

[fredfunk]

I got this shot on the way to work this morning... I think it is a Red-shouldered Hawk, but I can't tell from this angle so I wanted some confirmation from the experts!

 

[RJP]

Cooper's Hawk - see the long, banded tail for one thing.

 

[fredfunk]

Awesome, Thanks! I would have never gotten that on my own!

 

[RJP]

Welcome. BTW, this bird is immature, and therefore brown on the upperside. Adults are sort of a steel blue-gray.

 

[AdrianB73]

I agree with Cooper's hawk.

 

[etudiant]

Agree it is an accipiter, but less sure it is a Coopers. The tail seems square, the beak is small, the eyes are more mid head than forward and there is no sharp supercilium.
Why is this not a Sharp Shinned Hawk.

 

[fredfunk]

Here's another shot of the back of his head if this helps...

 

[KC Foggin]

I have to agree with etudiant. First sense looking at the tail was a Sharp-shinned.

 

[fredfunk]

Thanks for all the help!
Here's a bit of perspective for size...
It also appears that the tail is partially resting on a protrusion from the street lamp... not sure if that is affecting the perceived tail shape or not.

 

[AdrianB73]

I'd say tail shape is useless here. The square vs rounded tails of the two hawks are caused by Cooper's hawks having shorter outer tail feathers than middle tail feathers, while the sharp-shinned hawk's tail feathers are all roughly the same length. Only three or four tail feathers are visible in this bird (out of 12, I think) and they're all middle tail feathers. My impression of the head and bill size pointed me to Cooper's hawk, though I'm now slightly unsure.

 

[etudiant]

Agree they are a bear to tell apart sometimes.
In this case, we do not have a full view of the tail, but not sure we're only seeing the middle feathers. Also the Coopers usually has the tail tipped in white, unlike this bird.
So in my view it is probably a Sharpie, but only probably. Others may have a different opinion, which I respect.