Cooper's hawks in California: Identification, calls, nesting season and range

Cooper's hawks live in California all year. The California Department of Fish and Wildlife's habitat account for the species describes the Cooper's hawk as a breeding resident throughout most of the wooded part of California, from sea level to about 9,000 feet, including the southern Sierra Nevada foothills, the Owens Valley and local areas of Southern California. It favors dense oak, streamside and other forest near water. Some birds from farther north migrate into the state, and mountain birds move downslope and south in autumn to escape heavy snow.

The species appears on the official California checklist as Cooper's Hawk, Astur cooperii. Older references, including CDFW's account and the federal bird list, use the earlier name Accipiter cooperii. The Cooper's hawk is not listed as threatened or endangered, but it is protected. CDFW counts it among California's raptors, all of which are covered by state bird-of-prey laws, and it is covered by the federal Migratory Bird Treaty Act.

This guide covers how to identify a Cooper's hawk, where and when it occurs in California, what it eats, how it nests, what it sounds like, how the law treats it and how to tell it from the similar sharp-shinned hawk. It is part of our guide to the birds of California and our guide to birds of prey in California.

Cooper's hawk at a glance

Sources: CBRC checklist (September 8, 2026); All About Birds (size); CDFW California Wildlife Habitat Relationships account B116; CDFW listed-animals list (July 2026); 50 CFR 10.13.

Cooper's hawk identification: A crow-sized hawk with broad, rounded wings and a long tail:

The Cooper's hawk is a medium-sized hawk, about the size of a crow. Females are clearly bigger than males. The Cornell Lab of Ornithology's All About Birds gives a length of 14.6 to 15.3 inches for males and 16.5 to 17.7 inches for females, with wingspans from about 24 to 35 inches. It has the build of its group: short, broad, rounded wings and a very long tail with a rounded tip. In flight the head sticks out well past the front of the wings.

Adults are steely blue-gray on the back with a dark cap, warm reddish barring across the chest and belly, thick dark bands across the tail and red eyes. Young birds look quite different. They are brown above and white below with brown streaks that are sharpest across the upper breast, and their eyes are yellow.

Flight style is often the best clue. A Cooper's hawk usually flies with a few quick, stiff wingbeats followed by a glide, and it rarely flaps continuously even when crossing open ground. It is easy to overlook because it spends much of its time inside tree cover.

Cooper's hawks in California: Year-round residents of wooded areas from sea level to about 9,000 feet:

Cooper's hawks occur in both Northern and Southern California. CDFW's account describes a resident that breeds through most of the wooded portion of California. In Southern California it names the southern Sierra Nevada foothills, the New York Mountains in the eastern Mojave, the Owens Valley and other local areas as breeding grounds.

The species uses landscapes where woodland comes in patches and groves, with edges and snags for perching. The account says dense stands of live oak, riparian deciduous trees or other forest near water are used most often, and that the hawk is seldom found where there are no dense tree stands or patchy woodland.

Most Cooper's hawks in California do not migrate far. CDFW describes the species as mostly a yearlong resident. In autumn, birds move downslope and south out of areas with heavy snow and return in spring, and some birds from farther north migrate into California.

Across its range the Cooper's hawk has also adapted to towns. All About Birds says the species, once thought to avoid people, is now common in suburbs and cities, and that some studies have found more of them in towns than in forest, largely because of plentiful pigeons and doves. That observation covers North America as a whole. We found no California-specific count.

Cooper's hawk habitat, diet and nesting in California: Woodland hunters that breed from March to August:

The Cooper's hawk is a bird hunter. CDFW's account says it catches small birds, especially nestlings and fledglings during the nesting season, along with small mammals, reptiles and amphibians. It hunts in broken woodland and along habitat edges, using cover to hide and approach. It often bursts from a perch in dense cover and chases prey through branches, and it sometimes runs prey down in thickets. The account also notes reports of the hawk wetting or drowning prey. All About Birds adds that Cooper's hawks kill by squeezing repeatedly with their feet, unlike falcons, which bite. The hunting style is risky. In a study of more than 300 skeletons, 23 percent showed old, healed fractures in the chest bones.

That diet brings the hawk to backyards. Seed set out for songbirds can attract a Cooper's hawk looking for an easy meal. All About Birds suggests that if a hawk settles into a yard, taking the feeders down for a few days should encourage it to move on.

In California, the breeding season runs from March through August, with peak activity from May through July, according to CDFW. The nest is a platform of sticks lined with bark. In broadleaf trees it sits in a crotch usually 20 to 50 feet above the ground, and in conifers it rests on a horizontal branch or main crotch, often just below the lowest live limbs. Nests are usually near streams or other open water. A pair raises one brood a year from a clutch of two to six eggs, usually four or five. The female incubates while the male brings food. In one California study of 77 territories in oak stands, nests averaged 1.6 miles apart. Young hawks still learning to hunt may be killed by ravens, goshawks and great horned owls.

The oldest Cooper's hawk on record, according to All About Birds, was a male at least 20 years and 4 months old. It was banded in California in 1986 and found in Washington in 2006.

Cooper's hawk calls and sounds: A loud cak-cak-cak near the nest:

Cooper's hawks are quiet for much of the year. All About Birds' sound page says they tend to be silent outside the breeding season. The call most people hear is a loud, grating series of harsh "cak" notes lasting two to five seconds, which both members of a pair give to defend the nest and also use in courtship. Males often give a "kik" call to let their mates know where they are. Females use a "whaa" call when approaching males or taking food from them. Fledglings beg with a thin, high-pitched whistle. The sound page has recordings of each.

Cooper's hawk legal status in California: A protected raptor under state and federal law:

The Cooper's hawk is not on CDFW's July 2026 list of state and federally listed endangered and threatened animals, and it is not a fully protected species. It is still protected in several ways. Fish and Game Code section 3503.5 makes it unlawful to take, possess or destroy any bird of prey or its nest or eggs except as the code or its regulations allow. Section 3503 protects the nests and eggs of all birds. Section 3513 makes it unlawful to take or possess any bird designated under the federal Migratory Bird Treaty Act except as federal rules allow. CDFW's raptor page lists the Cooper's hawk among California's raptors and says all raptors are protected under state law.

At the federal level, the Cooper's hawk is on the Migratory Bird Treaty Act list in 50 CFR 10.13, where it still appears under the older name Accipiter cooperii.

Similar species to the Cooper's hawk in California: The sharp-shinned hawk and the American goshawk:

The sharp-shinned hawk is the bird most often confused with a Cooper's hawk. The two share the same shape and similar plumage, and both sometimes visit feeders. All About Birds says the Cooper's hawk is the larger of the two and that young Cooper's hawks show crisper streaking on the upper breast, while young sharp-shinned hawks are more diffusely streaked. Male Cooper's hawks are much smaller than females, so size alone is a weak clue. Habitat and season also differ somewhat. CDFW's sharp-shinned hawk account describes it as a fairly common migrant and winter resident throughout California and an uncommon breeder in mid-elevation forests, with a breeding range that is poorly documented. It eats mostly small birds no larger than jays.

The American goshawk is a related forest hawk. CDFW's account (under the older name northern goshawk) describes it as an uncommon year-round resident of mature, dense conifer forest at middle and higher elevations, from the North Coast Ranges and Klamath Mountains through the Sierra Nevada and a few Southern California peaks. CDFW lists it as a Species of Special Concern. The CDFW Cooper's hawk account notes that the three hawks may compete to a limited extent.

Cooper's hawks in California: A common but easily overlooked woodland hunter:

Cooper's hawks in California are present in every month, in oak woodland, streamside forest, conifer stands and, across their range, in leafy towns. They breed from March to August and are noisiest near the nest, and in autumn some move downslope or arrive from the north. The species is not listed as threatened or endangered, but state law protects it as a bird of prey and federal law protects it as a migratory bird. Our birds of prey in California guide covers California's other hawks.