Cooper's hawk

Description:

A medium-sized hawk with the classic accipiter shape: broad, rounded wings and a very long tail. In Cooper’s hawks, the head often appears large, the shoulders broad, and the tail rounded. Adults are steely blue-gray above with warm reddish bars on the underparts and thick dark bands on the tail. Juveniles are brown above and crisply streaked with brown on the upper breast, giving them a somewhat hooded look compared with young sharp-shinned hawks' more diffuse streaking.

Habitat:

Wooded habitats from deep forests to leafy subdivisions and backyards.

Notes:

Spotted near a chicken coop in Victoria, Vancouver island, Canada. The owner of the plot suggested that this bird is a Cooper's hawk because of the somewhat rounded shape of its tail. Though he also said that the goshawk and sharp-shinned hawk were frequent visitors to the chicken coop as well. (sources: see reference)