WhenToBird

Astur cooperii · Accipitridae

When Do Cooper's Hawks Arrive in Florida?

Adult male Cooper's Hawk
Photo: Shirley Zundell, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Cooper's Hawks are winter birds in Florida: the first arrive in early June, they are common by late June, peak in the second week of October (5.8% of checklists), and most are gone by late April.

When to look

First arrivalsJun 1-7early June
Common byJun 22-30late June
PeakOct 8-14the second week of October
Most gone byApr 22-30late April

Best: the second week of October. First arrivals early June; most are gone by late April. Peak: on about 5.8% of Florida checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Deccommon

Darker months: more checklists report it. Outlined: peak month.

0%2%4%6%Jan 1-7: 2.7% of 74446 checklistsJan 8-14: 2.7% of 60074 checklistsJan 15-21: 2.6% of 62945 checklistsJan 22-31: 2.6% of 84954 checklistsFeb 1-7: 2.7% of 59204 checklistsFeb 8-14: 2.7% of 63259 checklistsFeb 15-21: 2.6% of 77150 checklistsFeb 22-28: 2.9% of 62850 checklistsMar 1-7: 2.8% of 58560 checklistsMar 8-14: 2.7% of 57756 checklistsMar 15-21: 2.6% of 54898 checklistsMar 22-31: 2.8% of 76702 checklistsApr 1-7: 2.8% of 55096 checklistsApr 8-14: 2.6% of 55892 checklistsApr 15-21: 2.5% of 59358 checklistsApr 22-30: 2.4% of 73124 checklistsMay 1-7: 2.2% of 47915 checklistsMay 8-14: 1.9% of 44114 checklistsMay 15-21: 1.9% of 31858 checklistsMay 22-31: 1.9% of 40723 checklistsJun 1-7: 2.1% of 31668 checklistsJun 8-14: 2.1% of 27802 checklistsJun 15-21: 2.2% of 26698 checklistsJun 22-30: 2.4% of 32346 checklistsJul 1-7: 2.6% of 23826 checklistsJul 8-14: 2.8% of 23071 checklistsJul 15-21: 3.1% of 22903 checklistsJul 22-31: 3.0% of 32952 checklistsAug 1-7: 3.1% of 25093 checklistsAug 8-14: 3.2% of 24888 checklistsAug 15-21: 3.5% of 26030 checklistsAug 22-31: 3.9% of 38612 checklistsSep 1-7: 4.2% of 31023 checklistsSep 8-14: 4.3% of 30022 checklistsSep 15-21: 4.6% of 31611 checklistsSep 22-30: 4.8% of 42108 checklistsOct 1-7: 5.4% of 36219 checklistsOct 8-14: 6.0% of 43113 checklistsOct 15-21: 5.9% of 40987 checklistsOct 22-31: 5.5% of 53457 checklistsNov 1-7: 4.7% of 38587 checklistsNov 8-14: 4.0% of 39208 checklistsNov 15-21: 3.8% of 39729 checklistsNov 22-30: 3.5% of 54965 checklistsDec 1-7: 3.6% of 42070 checklistsDec 8-14: 3.3% of 43424 checklistsDec 15-21: 3.2% of 50581 checklistsDec 22-31: 3.0% of 82405 checklistsJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Share of complete checklists reporting it, by week (4 per month). Grey bars: fewer than 10 checklists, not counted.

Frequency is the share of complete checklists in Florida that listed the bird, 2016–2025. It is not a head count, and it follows where and when people go birding. How to read it.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
today
Second week of November

Each county is shaded by the share of complete checklists there that listed the bird, blended with the weeks either side. Darker is more often. It follows where people watch birds, not how many birds there are. How to read it.

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Where in Florida

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Broward CountyBest early October · 1145 checklists that week, 57,530 in all14%
  2. Monroe CountyBest the second week of October · 1361 checklists that week, 62,908 in all13%
  3. Miami-Dade CountyBest early October · 1785 checklists that week, 118,849 in all13%
  4. Pinellas CountyBest early October · 2431 checklists that week, 148,901 in all12%
  5. Santa Rosa CountyBest the second week of October · 335 checklists that week, 15,001 in all12%
  6. Okaloosa CountyBest late October · 409 checklists that week, 16,003 in all11%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Cliff LakeBroward County, best the second week of August · 25 checklists that week, 1,950 in all73%
  2. Military Trail Natural AreaBroward County, best the second week of October · 30 checklists that week, 468 in all48%
  3. Curry Hammock State ParkMonroe County, best mid October · 58 checklists that week, 587 in all44%
  4. Kendale Lakes ParkMiami-Dade County, best late September · 26 checklists that week, 665 in all40%
  5. Vista ParkBroward County, best late January · 25 checklists that week, 608 in all39%
  6. A D Barnes County ParkMiami-Dade County, best the second week of July · 21 checklists that week, 3,421 in all36%

Busy spots report more of everything; compare the checklist counts before you drive anywhere.

Best time of day

In Florida, the Cooper's Hawk is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (4.5% of those checklists).

0%2%4%6%12 am: too few checklists (771) to judge1 am: too few checklists (771) to judge2 am: too few checklists (701) to judge3 am: too few checklists (752) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1378) to judge5 am: too few checklists (9462) to judge6 am: 4.2% of 94591 checklists7 am: 4.6% of 296183 checklists8 am: 4.0% of 319987 checklists9 am: 3.2% of 254830 checklists10 am: 2.8% of 209480 checklists11 am: 2.4% of 163924 checklists12 pm: 2.2% of 133478 checklists1 pm: 2.3% of 125012 checklists2 pm: 2.4% of 125299 checklists3 pm: 2.7% of 131072 checklists4 pm: 2.9% of 134410 checklists5 pm: 2.7% of 113373 checklists6 pm: 2.4% of 69886 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (37509) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (8966) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2093) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1485) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (862) to judge12a3a6a9a12p3p6p9p
Share of checklists started in each local hour that reported it. It reflects when people go birding as well as when birds are active. Grey hours have too few checklists (under 2% of the state’s, or under 200) to judge.
Week-by-week table
MonthDays 1-78-1415-2122-end
January2.7%2.7%2.6%2.6%
February2.7%2.7%2.6%2.9%
March2.8%2.7%2.6%2.8%
April2.8%2.6%2.5%2.4%
May2.2%1.9%1.9%1.9%
June2.1%2.1%2.2%2.4%
July2.6%2.8%3.1%3.0%
August3.1%3.2%3.5%3.9%
September4.2%4.3%4.6%4.8%
October5.4%6.0%5.9%5.5%
November4.7%4.0%3.8%3.5%
December3.6%3.3%3.2%3.0%

Neighboring states

  • Georgia: year-round, peaks mid October
  • South Carolina: arrives late May, 1 week earlier than Florida
  • Alabama: year-round, peaks mid October
  • Mississippi: arrives the second week of June, 1 week later than Florida

Common questions

When do Cooper's Hawks arrive in Florida?
Cooper's Hawks are winter birds in Florida: the first arrive in early June, they are common by late June, peak in the second week of October (5.8% of checklists), and most are gone by late April.
When do Cooper's Hawks leave Florida?
Most Cooper's Hawks have left Florida by late April, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until the second week of May.
When is the best time to see a Cooper's Hawk in Florida?
The Cooper's Hawk is reported most often in the second week of October, on about 5.8% of Florida checklists.
Where in Florida are Cooper's Hawks seen most often?
By county, Broward County, Monroe County, and Miami-Dade County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Cooper's Hawk (counties with at least 200 checklists).