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Thanks for the input on this ID. More opinions welcome. The dilemma in my mind is Coopers or Goshawk. This was reactive birding at its best! A heard flurry of mourning doves from my platform feeder, a LARGE gray backed hawk on the ground, a grab of my camera. a giz ID of Gos based on size and gray color, a photo through the window and gone. Then - what's the ID? This bird was BIG - immediately ruling out Sharpie in my mind. Lacking a distinct facial/head pattern of a Goshawk, I considered Coopers. As I continue to contemplate and look at images, the Gos seems to show heavy streaking on the throat in all plumages with a distinct eye line. My bird has that whitish chin with a hint of russet on front and legs. I am now guessing this is a Coopers lacking the above characteristics of a Gos. I won't charge the ID in ebird yet! Ruth E. Dorset On Tue, Aug 13, 2019 at 4:53 PM Jane Stein <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > I agree with Bob that this is not a Goshawk, but differ on some of the > details. > > The absence of a very contrasty broad white eyestripe definitely > eliminates Gos, as does the hint of orange feathering on the leg. There is > what appears to be a faint white eyestripe on your bird, which is > characteristic of Sharpie, but it also appears to have a very dark cap, > which would make the lighter feathering below stand out and look like an > eyestripe, but the dark cap is characteristic of a Coop. > > Delving into accipiter eye color is not for the faint of heart because it > varies by age and even from bird to bird. First-year birds have a yellow > eye and older birds more orangey, but other than that, it's just not > consistent enough to draw conclusions from. > > This is an adult accipiter given its basically solid and unmottled back, > but whether Coop or Sharpie is hard to tell, particularly given the absence > of anything to gauge its size by. My vote would be for Coop mainly because > of the bird's sturdy-looking legs, which we don't have enough of a view of > to be certain. Sharpies of any age have what we call "toothpick legs," and > the little bit of lower leg we can see in the pic sure doesn't look > toothpicky. The absence of a crest or crown, which is what I assume Bob > means by a "blocky head," doesn't necessarily mean this isn't a Coop. > Coops have a crest they can raise at the back of the head, but if they > don't raise it, you can't see it. So the crest, if visible, marks a bird > as a Coop for sure, but the absence of it in a single shot doesn't > eliminate the possibility. > > Distinguishing Coops from Sharpies is tough, especially in a single > photograph! > > Jane > (Shoreham) > > > > > On Tue, 13 Aug 2019 15:13:16 -0400, R Stewart <[log in to unmask]> > wrote: > > Need help IDing the hawk photo attached. > > > > > > My yard birds - 324 Morse Hill Rd. E. Dorset, Bennington, Vermont, US > > Aug 12, 2019 4:00 PM - 4:30 PM > > Protocol: Stationary > > Comments: Feeder observation throughout the day. Quick hawk visit > about > > 6:30. > > 12 species > > > > Mourning Dove 4 > > Ruby-throated Hummingbird 2 > > Northern Goshawk 1 A brief visit next to feeder. At least enough > time > > to get a picture and a fly away view. Only saw back . Long barred tail > as > > it flew away from my viewpoint. Need confirmation > > Northern Flicker 1 > > Red-eyed Vireo 1 > > Blue Jay 4 > > Black-capped Chickadee 2 > > House Wren 1 > > American Robin 2 > > American Goldfinch 4 > > Red-winged Blackbird 8 > > Northern Cardinal 2 > > > > View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S58967838 > > > > This report was generated automatically by eBird v3 > > (https://ebird.org/home) >