July 3, 2018
July 5, 2018, The hawk brought a
nestmate who wasn't as impressed as the first one.
Probably because there isn't enough room for two.
The birdbath is about 22 inches.
Photos
©Nicky Davis
After consulting several
birding experts, I have labeled this bird a
Cooper's Hawk. Here are the points
considered and pointed out by Kristin Purdy, a
bird expert in our area.
"It is so young
and fresh that it has fledged very
recently. At this time of year at our
populated elevations, it would be quite unusual
to have a Sharp-shinned Hawk because the species
nests high in the mountains and it's early for
them to be on the move. But Cooper's nest
in backyard woodlots and in city parks near
where we live. Besides the fact that the
bird is generally brown and white to show its
youth, the soft slate-blue color of the iris
nails the age as a fledgling. Features
that show the species include the narrow, brown,
vertical streaks on the breast (young Sharpies
have "fat" rusty-brown blobby streaks sometimes
termed "noodling", not as dark or
crisp-looking), the paler nape and the tinges of
buffy color on the head and upper breast.
Cooper's also have a longer head from
front-to-back and that length makes the eye look
like it's placed a little farther forward on the
face. A Sharpie's head isn't quite as long
front to back and the eye tends to look more
centered on the side of the head. Finally,
check your other images for the terminal band on
the end of the tail. I see it in one
image. This is more prominent in Cooper's
and less prominent in Sharpie's; the
bird's terminal white tail band is strong enough
that it supports other ID points as a Cooper's.
" Kristin Purdy
Also I.D.'d by Keith Davis an expert birder from
St. George, Utah
Photographed
at Draper, Utah July 3, 2018
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