Tail shape on perched accipiters can be a dodgey ID point. The attached link is a googled image of Sharp-shinned showing a seemingly rounded tail. The bird in question also has what appears to be a fairly rounded head (Cooper's have flattish heads). These are talking points-I'm still not 100%, but sticking with my tentative ID. -O- Here is a link that might be useful:

Never mind... I was pretty sure there were Cooper's so called the local Cooper expert (who is a friend). He came out and together we saw at least two young Coops (out of the nest). He is hoping to come back today and band them as well as the adults. Cool. We've always thought we had Cooper's nesting, but couldn't find the nest. Turns out they are slightly off our property, so I probably just had never wandered quite far enough to find them.

We have had a pair of Cooper's Hawks nesting in our neighborhood for the past two years. I like watching the hawks, and don't want to harm them in any way, but they have completely driven off (or eaten!) all our songbirds. Two weeks ago, we had scores of sparrows, chickadees, and juncos, as well as 3 pairs of cardinals at our feeder. There were so many birds that they were waiting on the railing adjacent to the feeder for their turn -- and we have a large feeder -- 12 cup capacity with at least a dozen feeding ports. We were refilling the feeder every day or every other day. Five days ago, the songbirds just disappeared overnight -- went from frequent refilling of feeder to no activity at all for last four days. This morning, we saw the Coopers Hawks for the first time this season, although they may have been in the area for a time. I can't believe they could have devoured all the songbirds, but they've surely intimidated them to the point where the seed level in our feeder has remained unchanged for four days. I was surprised when the hawks first showed up, as I really didn't think they'd nest in town. (We live in residential neighborhood of medium-sized lots in a relatively small town.) Our neighborhood has the usual amount of "commotion" that goes on in a neighborhood with young families, working couples, and retirees -- vehicle noise of frequent comings and goings, usual noise made by kids and pets (mostly dogs), and seasonal power equipment (mowers, snowblowers). While we don't live in an unusually noisy area, it's by no means quiet either, and the noise level doesn't seem to deter the hawks one bit. Last summer, I noticed that I didn't see or hear the hawks for a few days when a flight of crows stopped in our area for a day or two. We also have at least one owl (not sure what kind, but I suspect great horned owl by its calls), which we were hearing nightly for most of the winter, although I haven't heard the nightly hoots for a few days. Although I have no great love for crows, I'd like to see a few more around, as they seem to keep the hawks at bay. What else can we do to encourage the hawks to "move along" and leave our songbirds alone? As I said, I have no desire to harm the hawks in any way; I'd just like to see them relocate.

Hi all, I'm new here, (2nd post) but that photo looks like a Cooper's Hawk to me. Here's a shot of (what was ID'd by others as) a Red-Shouldered Hawk: Pretty, but pretty different I think. I have some other shots of this guy at the link below. Kenn Here is a link that might be useful: Red-Shouldered Hawk