That's an adult Cooper's Hawk...pretty uncommon for it to be eating a mammal, but they do that sometimes. Nice sighting.

Scott

From what I believe I can see of the feet and prey choice. I would personally be more inclined to say goshawk, we may never know ;p

Zack,

Definitely not a Goshawk...the structure is wrong, the breast is barred orange, not gray, the feet look fine for Coop to me, and there's no white supercilium. It's a Coop...they do take small mammals sometimes, as I mentioned.

Scott

I don't think it is either one of the afore mentioned. But what I think it is I can't say, because frankly, I am stumped.
Here is a link I found that has pics of both raptors and then some.

Here is a link that might be useful: Hawks

Scott is rarely wrong.

It is a Cooper's hawk. Your link shows a juvenile hawk. Adults are slate grey. This image is from http://home.earthlink.net/~barbolink1/BrdLnks/yardpics.html:

{{!gwi}}

No wonder I had issues finding it. Maybe the light has somethign to to with making his head appear totally white to me.

Maybe the best way to tell that this is a Cooper's is by the legs. Goshawk would be feathered farther down. I'm not sure what Scott's comment about structure means. Goshawk should have a black streak over the eye, covering about half the cheek, much like an osprey. It's difficult to see the head on this bird, and I can't see the orange barring at all.

Here is a link that might be useful: Goshawk

Is that in the Texas area? could be a crested Caracara?

I see no orange on this bird, either.

I thought, first thing, "Crested Caracara," then "Northern Goshawk," based on its overall coloring and the habitat. The habitat seems wrong for a Caracara, but we had one visiting us in redwood country not long ago, eating at several deer carcasses along Highway One and the bird appeared several weeks later (assuming it was the same one) in Oregon. . .

While a Northern Goshawk *would* be feathered farther down on the legs, take a closer look at this photo, then turn to page 190 in the NGFG, and check out the feathering on the legs of the Goshawk (imm) in the painting: the feathers are farther down, yes, but they are sweeping back, as in the bird in the photo.

A Northern Goshawk *would* go after prey as large as a squirrel. I sincerely doubt a Cooper's would take prey that large. . .

This is a Cooper's hawk, not a gos. The tarsi (ankles) and feet are way too delicate for a goshawk. As a falconer, I encounter goshawks with my fellow falconers, and I can tell you, this ain't no goshawk. It's a Coop.'

I agree - 100% adult Coopers hawk! -Wendy

That is a Cooper's Hawk. Cooper's diet consists of more mammal prey than Sharp-shinned but less than of Northern Goshawk. Sharp-shinned Hawks take almost entirely bird, but Cooper's readily take small forest mammals such as squirrels and chipmunks. Goshawks take mammal prey up to snowshoe hares in size...one of their major prey items along with forest grouse such as Blue and Ruffed.

BN