Sharp-shinned Hawks at Bake Oven Knob

Sharp-shinned Hawk

The migration of Sharp-shinned Hawks intensified this week at Bake Oven Knob in Lehigh County.

During the week ended October 10, watchers reported 1,181 Sharpies, much higher than the 201 seen during the previous week and 304 the week before. Broad-winged Hawks, which occupied the skies from early to mid-September, were virtually absent.

Identifying a Sharp-shinned Hawk takes a quick eye. The smallest hawk in North America (about the size of a jay), they breed in deep forests during the summer. They are daring, acrobatic fliers, easily moving among the dense canopy of trees to hunt birds and small mammals. They occasionally hunt at bird feeders. If you hear a sudden commotion of high-pitched alarm calls among backyard songbirds, that often means a Sharpie is lurking.

Sharp-shinned Hawk

It is difficult to distinguish a Sharp-shinned Hawk from a Cooper’s Hawk. The adult Cooper’s Hawk is bigger but the juvenile Cooper's is about the same size as an adult Sharpie. Coopers have a larger head. Sharpies seem more compact in flight than Coopers; the latter's head projects beyond the leading edge of the wings. The Sharpie's tail is sharper. The Cooper's Hawk's wingbeats are slower. If the hawk has thicker legs and larger feet as it perches, the bird usually is a Cooper’s. Another distinction is their behavior. In the Lehigh Valley Sharpies tend to be seen most often during migration periods; Cooper’s Hawks remain in the Lehigh Valley year-round.

Also seen in the skies of Bake Oven Knob during the week were Red-tailed Hawks, 32; Cooper’s Hawks, 26; Ospreys, 25; American Kestrels, 25; Peregrine Falcons, 18; Bald Eagles, 17; Merlins, 13; Northern Harrier, 12; Broad-winged Hawks, 5; Red-shouldered Hawks, 3; Northern Goshawks, 1, and Golden Eagles, 1. Turkey Vultures numbered 76, Black Vultures, 20. 

Other birds included the Canada Goose; Common Raven; Blue Jay; Northern Flicker; Black-throated Blue Warbler; Black-throated Green Warbler; Yellow-rumped Warbler; Blue-headed Vireo; Double-breasted Cormorant; Chimney Swift; Tufted Titmouse; Ruby-crowned Kinglet; Eastern Bluebird; Pileated, and Red-bellied and Hairy woodpeckers.