Agreed, Zach.  The tail feathers, despite the broad white tips, are the 
main tip-off-- all the same length.  In this tail position, Coop's has 
noticeably shorter outer tail feathers.  The relatively small, bug-eyed 
head is another.  Chest streaking is harder to judge, for me anyway, 
because it's not that consistent from bird to bird.

It does look large and chesty for a Sharpie, but that may be the lack of 
context from this close, since it's impossible to tell from the photos 
how large those branches and trunks are.  And a big female Sharpies can 
be pretty close to male Coop's in size.  Lastly, I'd add this bird's 
rather thin, stick-like legs, although there's only a glimpse of them in 
the one pic that shows the bird lifting off from its branch, as 
contrasted with the Coop's thick, sturdy-looking legs.  The Coop often 
chases prey on foot, whereas the Sharpie rarely does, so the difference 
in the evolution of leg size actually has a purpose.

Jane
(Shoreham)


On 10/15/2018 7:35 AM, zach schwartz-weinstein wrote:
> Sharpie, with the messier reddish streaking, bug-eyed appearance, small
> head and bill, and even-length tail feathers.  Nice photos.
> 
> On Mon, Oct 15, 2018 at 7:33 AM Veer Frost <
> [log in to unmask]> wrote:
> 
>> Gorgeous, thank you, hope someone will know.Veer Frost, Passumpsic
>>
>> On October 14, 2018 at 9:55 PM, "cynthia crawford"  wrote:Got some
>> pretty good pictures- pretty sure this is a Cooper's. Opinions
>> welcome:
>> https://www.flickr.com/photos/33836164@N03/albums/72157700879431161
>>
>> Cynthia Crawford
>>
>> *Creature Kinships and Natural Affinities*
>> Animal and Nature Paintings, Portraits and Prints
>> NEW WEB SITE:
>> www.creaturekinships.net
>>
>> www.creaturekinships.com
>> MORE PHOTOS and ARTWORK: http://pbase.com/creaturekinships
>> EVEN MORE PHOTOS: https://www.flickr.com/photos/33836164@N03/
>> Castle & Court Music for Harp:
>> http://galleries.creaturekinships.com/?page_id=59
>> BLOG: http://creature-kinships.blogspot.com/
>>