Cooper's Hawk

A medium-sized hawk with broad, rounded wings and a very long tail. Adults have bluish-gray backs and rufous-barred underparts.

Distinctive bold banding with alternating dark grayish-brown and pale whitish-to-tan bars. The tip is dark.

Pennaceous for the top two-thirds; highly plumulaceous (downy) at the base for insulation.

Smooth and firm in the banded section; soft and wispy at the base with a matte finish.

Clean, horizontal dark-and-light banding and the large downy base characteristic of Accipiter body feathers.

Wooded areas, deciduous forests, and increasingly common in suburban backyard areas with bird feeders.

Common throughout North America, from Southern Canada through most of the United States to Central Mexico.

Apex avian predator, regulating populations of songbirds and small mammals in forest ecosystems.

Sharp-shinned Hawk (smaller, similar banding) and Broad-winged Hawk (different banding proportion).

Cooper's Hawks are 'true' hawks (Accipiters) specialized for high-speed maneuvering through dense trees to hunt other birds.

Good condition; show minor fraying at the edges suggesting naturally molted wear.