WhenToBird

Astur cooperii · Accipitridae

When Do Cooper's Hawks Arrive in New York?

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

Cooper's Hawks are winter birds in New York: the first arrive in mid July, they are common by mid August, peak in mid October (7.9% of checklists), and most are gone by late April.

When to look

First arrivalsJul 15-21mid July
Common byAug 15-21mid August
PeakOct 15-21mid October
Most gone byApr 22-30late April

Best: mid October. First arrivals mid July; most are gone by late April. Peak: on about 7.9% of New York checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Juluncommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%5%10%Jan 1-7: 5.0% of 66410 checklistsJan 8-14: 5.0% of 49310 checklistsJan 15-21: 4.7% of 49919 checklistsJan 22-31: 4.9% of 62513 checklistsFeb 1-7: 4.6% of 43526 checklistsFeb 8-14: 4.4% of 49753 checklistsFeb 15-21: 3.5% of 65147 checklistsFeb 22-28: 3.6% of 50173 checklistsMar 1-7: 3.6% of 50325 checklistsMar 8-14: 4.0% of 55371 checklistsMar 15-21: 3.9% of 56293 checklistsMar 22-31: 3.9% of 82677 checklistsApr 1-7: 3.6% of 65295 checklistsApr 8-14: 3.7% of 73080 checklistsApr 15-21: 3.6% of 73857 checklistsApr 22-30: 3.4% of 106093 checklistsMay 1-7: 2.8% of 102772 checklistsMay 8-14: 2.1% of 110051 checklistsMay 15-21: 1.6% of 94797 checklistsMay 22-31: 1.2% of 101272 checklistsJun 1-7: 1.3% of 59471 checklistsJun 8-14: 1.4% of 55497 checklistsJun 15-21: 1.4% of 51761 checklistsJun 22-30: 1.5% of 59219 checklistsJul 1-7: 1.5% of 48226 checklistsJul 8-14: 1.5% of 42315 checklistsJul 15-21: 1.6% of 40637 checklistsJul 22-31: 1.8% of 57183 checklistsAug 1-7: 2.1% of 40461 checklistsAug 8-14: 2.4% of 39880 checklistsAug 15-21: 3.0% of 41146 checklistsAug 22-31: 3.5% of 63381 checklistsSep 1-7: 3.8% of 48640 checklistsSep 8-14: 4.5% of 47882 checklistsSep 15-21: 5.7% of 49063 checklistsSep 22-30: 6.1% of 57906 checklistsOct 1-7: 6.8% of 48447 checklistsOct 8-14: 7.7% of 51901 checklistsOct 15-21: 8.0% of 46717 checklistsOct 22-31: 7.9% of 61992 checklistsNov 1-7: 7.0% of 44593 checklistsNov 8-14: 6.7% of 42566 checklistsNov 15-21: 6.8% of 39675 checklistsNov 22-30: 6.1% of 51197 checklistsDec 1-7: 6.3% of 36567 checklistsDec 8-14: 6.2% of 37254 checklistsDec 15-21: 6.5% of 43754 checklistsDec 22-31: 5.8% of 62470 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 New York 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 New York

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Kings CountyBest late October · 3874 checklists that week, 134,897 in all19%
  2. New York CountyBest late December · 3421 checklists that week, 187,471 in all17%
  3. Bronx CountyBest mid October · 513 checklists that week, 24,489 in all16%
  4. Nassau CountyBest mid October · 1599 checklists that week, 95,019 in all15%
  5. Queens CountyBest late October · 1866 checklists that week, 76,201 in all14%
  6. Westchester CountyBest the second week of October · 2024 checklists that week, 108,101 in all12%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Alley Pond Park (Alley Creek)Queens County, best late March · 26 checklists that week, 185 in all75%
  2. Arthur W. Butler Memorial SanctuaryWestchester County, best mid October · 20 checklists that week, 281 in all67%
  3. Mohonk PreserveUlster County, best late September · 21 checklists that week, 159 in all64%
  4. Gateway National Recreation Area (northeast 4)Queens County, best the second week of October · 24 checklists that week, 177 in all62%
  5. Frisbee Hill ParkMonroe County, best mid March · 20 checklists that week, 177 in all60%
  6. Fort Washington ParkNew York County, best late October · 30 checklists that week, 344 in all60%

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

Best time of day

In New York, the Cooper's Hawk is most often listed on checklists started between 7 and 9 am (4.9% of those checklists).

0%2%4%6%12 am: too few checklists (1146) to judge1 am: too few checklists (1055) to judge2 am: too few checklists (1121) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1353) to judge4 am: too few checklists (4785) to judge5 am: too few checklists (32052) to judge6 am: 4.2% of 124869 checklists7 am: 5.0% of 298506 checklists8 am: 4.7% of 337334 checklists9 am: 4.7% of 307787 checklists10 am: 4.2% of 270801 checklists11 am: 3.8% of 233238 checklists12 pm: 3.7% of 213830 checklists1 pm: 3.8% of 193321 checklists2 pm: 3.8% of 180741 checklists3 pm: 3.5% of 170348 checklists4 pm: 2.9% of 147224 checklists5 pm: 2.3% of 111962 checklists6 pm: 1.8% of 78261 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (44425) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (15648) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (4795) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (2454) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (1378) 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
January5.0%5.0%4.7%4.9%
February4.6%4.4%3.5%3.6%
March3.6%4.0%3.9%3.9%
April3.6%3.7%3.6%3.4%
May2.8%2.1%1.6%1.2%
June1.3%1.4%1.4%1.5%
July1.5%1.5%1.6%1.8%
August2.1%2.4%3.0%3.5%
September3.8%4.5%5.7%6.1%
October6.8%7.7%8.0%7.9%
November7.0%6.7%6.8%6.1%
December6.3%6.2%6.5%5.8%

Neighboring states

  • Connecticut: arrives late July, 1 week later than New York
  • New Jersey: arrives mid September, 8 weeks later than New York
  • Pennsylvania: arrives the second week of September, 7 weeks later than New York
  • Vermont: arrives mid July, in the same week than New York

Common questions

When do Cooper's Hawks arrive in New York?
Cooper's Hawks are winter birds in New York: the first arrive in mid July, they are common by mid August, peak in mid October (7.9% of checklists), and most are gone by late April.
When do Cooper's Hawks leave New York?
Most Cooper's Hawks have left New York by late April, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until mid May.
When is the best time to see a Cooper's Hawk in New York?
The Cooper's Hawk is reported most often in mid October, on about 7.9% of New York checklists.
Where in New York are Cooper's Hawks seen most often?
By county, Kings County, New York County, and Bronx County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Cooper's Hawk (counties with at least 200 checklists).