Cooper's Hawk Article

 Cooper's Hawk

Appearance

Cooper's hawks physical characteristics are to help increase their agility, speeds, and stealth. Their wings are shorter compared to their body size. Their wingspan is about 33 inches. Their wings have rounded tips at their end. Cooper's hawks have long feathers which help them move throughout trees and to help them make sharp turns. They have a strong beak and sharp talons to help them grip onto their prey. Cooper's hawks stand from 14 inches to 20 inches in length. Their small size doesn't stop them from hunting larger animals than they are. Females are relatively larger than males by a few more ounces and inches. Cooper's hawks colors are usually brown or blue-gray color on their back and their wings while their bellies are much lighter than their backs and wings. 

 Diet

Cooper's hawks are carnivores who hunt for live prey and rarely consume carrion (already dead animals that are rotting). These hawks prefer to eat specific type of birds but they won't stop eating other kinds of birds when they become hungry. They mostly hunt chickens, quail, and other fowl. Farmers don't like these animals because the hawks kill their coops. Bats are another animal that these hawks hunt. Usually, these hawks hunt small to medium sized bird species. Besides birds, Cooper's hawks can hunt snakes, frogs, squirrels, and chipmunks. 

Habitat  

Cooper's hawks mostly hunt and live in wooden areas like in the forest. They prefer to live in temperate climates. Cooper's hawks lie from southern Canada to Central America (about Mexico). The hawks that live in Canada and in northern US migrate to the south of US or Central America. Since these hawks have small wings and long feathers, it is easy to navigate through the trees to catch their prey. Cooper's hawks coloration helps them blend in (or camouflage) among the branches of the trees and the tree trunks. 

Reproduction

Cooper's hawks only have one mate per season. There is a special mating dance for these hawks, it happens when the two birds circle the sky and during the sky circling some dances might happen such as arching, flaring, and others. Breeding and nest building happens during February and March. Quite a short time for building! Both parents take care of their chicks to feed them and protect them. Their nests are mostly made of sticks, bark, and leaves with mud to hold it together. When a pair feels threatened they make a warning call. Females will lay from 3 to 5 eggs. Chicks hatch from a blueish-white egg. Their incubation time is about 35 days (about 1 month or so). When chicks are born they will remain in the nest for about 4 to 5 weeks until they start to fly. Cooper's hawks live from 8 to 10 years and more in captivity.

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