Never seen one? It is a hawk with short wings and long tails. 10-14 inches. Blue Jay-size, but thinner. A larger, rarer, Coopers Hawk has a rounded tail tip.
Last winter a sharp-shinned flew into a large window of our sunroom. Otherwise I would never have seen one. They are quite beautiful.
Range: Alaska; MacKenzie, British Columbia; and Newfoundland. Newfoundland -- I was there once for two weeks, climbing telephone poles and running telephone lines with the Seabees. Also sharp-shinned hawks can be found south to Florida and northern Mexico. Don't you find that amazing?
I saw one again today as I was cutting wood in the front of the house. It preys on warblers and sparrows, small rodents and insects. It flies low and rapido. Like five-feet-or-so low. The sparrows were chirping away, so I guess he was after them. He landed for a few seconds in a large rhododendron that our neighbor Teddy and grandson Abel call “The Sloth Cabin.” He had no luck today.
Sharp-shinned hawks are intolerant of civilization and have become scarce as breeding birds in more settled areas.
The Wampanoags said that when you see a special animal, you will be blessed for that day -- and I was. It was a good day. A really good day.
