Astur cooperii (Bonaparte 1828)

Cooper's Hawk

Synonym(s): Accipiter cooperii Bonaparte 1828

Florida native

Click on any image to open the slideshow

These medium-sized accipiters winter in the southern half of the peninsula and are found year-round northward. Breeding range is across the northern tier of the United States and somewhat into south Canada. In addition to south Florida, Cooper's hawks winter in parts of the southwest and Mexico. They can be found year-round in much of the rest of the United States.
Adults have blueish-gray back, with paler cheeks and neck, and very pale underside with distinctive reddish barring on the breast. The relatively large head has a black cap, red eye and small strongly-hooked beak. The tail is long and barred with a thin terminal white stripe. Immatures are more brownish both overall and on the barred chest.
The species was named by Charles Lucien Bonaparte in honor of his friend and fellow ornithologist William Cooper (1798–1864) who had sent Bonaparte a specimen of the hawk in 1828. Cooper was an early American naturalist, conchologist and collector who sent various specimens to a number of leading scientists of the time.
In 2024 all North American Accipiter species except Accipiter striatus (Sharp-shinned Hawk) were moved to the genus Astur (true goshawks), including Cooper's hawk.

Astur cooperii is a member of the Accipitridae - Hawks & Eagles family.

iNaturalist profile for this species

For more information on this species, visit the following link:
Cornell Lab All About Birds page for this species

Date record last modified: Oct 30, 2024