WhenToBird

Accipiter striatus · Accipitridae

When Do Sharp-shinned Hawks Arrive in Colorado?

Adult Sharp-shinned Hawk
Photo: Kent P. McFarland, CC0 1.0 via iNaturalist

Sharp-shinned Hawks are winter birds in Colorado: they arrive in late August, peak in the second week of January (1.9% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of May.

When to look

First arrivalsAug 22-31late August
Common byAug 22-31late August
PeakJan 8-14the second week of January
Most gone byMay 8-14the second week of May

Best: the second week of January. First arrivals late August; most are gone by the second week of May. Peak: on about 1.9% of Colorado checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maycommon
  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%0.5%1%1.5%2%Jan 1-7: 2.0% of 32254 checklistsJan 8-14: 1.8% of 23278 checklistsJan 15-21: 1.8% of 22933 checklistsJan 22-31: 1.7% of 30856 checklistsFeb 1-7: 1.5% of 21464 checklistsFeb 8-14: 1.1% of 22910 checklistsFeb 15-21: 1.2% of 28739 checklistsFeb 22-28: 1.2% of 21833 checklistsMar 1-7: 1.1% of 23066 checklistsMar 8-14: 1.0% of 23783 checklistsMar 15-21: 1.0% of 24797 checklistsMar 22-31: 1.1% of 38439 checklistsApr 1-7: 1.1% of 31676 checklistsApr 8-14: 1.2% of 35092 checklistsApr 15-21: 1.6% of 36778 checklistsApr 22-30: 1.6% of 50885 checklistsMay 1-7: 1.2% of 44186 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.8% of 49011 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.7% of 40784 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.5% of 53073 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.5% of 32432 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.4% of 29978 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.4% of 29457 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.3% of 36072 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.3% of 28857 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.3% of 27224 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.2% of 27629 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.3% of 37318 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.4% of 25893 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.4% of 24870 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.6% of 24035 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.9% of 35691 checklistsSep 1-7: 1.1% of 27068 checklistsSep 8-14: 1.5% of 26709 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.6% of 26098 checklistsSep 22-30: 1.7% of 31550 checklistsOct 1-7: 1.7% of 24110 checklistsOct 8-14: 1.8% of 23352 checklistsOct 15-21: 1.7% of 21895 checklistsOct 22-31: 1.6% of 28319 checklistsNov 1-7: 1.7% of 21698 checklistsNov 8-14: 1.5% of 21061 checklistsNov 15-21: 1.6% of 19855 checklistsNov 22-30: 1.6% of 25798 checklistsDec 1-7: 1.8% of 18626 checklistsDec 8-14: 1.8% of 19004 checklistsDec 15-21: 1.9% of 23103 checklistsDec 22-31: 1.7% of 30802 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 Colorado 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 Colorado

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Rio Blanco CountyBest the second week of February · 10 checklists that week, 2,806 in all12%
  2. Baca CountyBest the second week of October · 33 checklists that week, 3,209 in all11%
  3. Otero CountyBest the second week of December · 49 checklists that week, 4,404 in all9.6%
  4. Prowers CountyBest late November · 110 checklists that week, 11,307 in all9.2%
  5. Conejos CountyBest early September · 35 checklists that week, 1,636 in all8.7%
  6. Kit Carson CountyBest mid September · 77 checklists that week, 2,633 in all8.6%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Matthews/Winters ParkJefferson County, best early May · 32 checklists that week, 502 in all39%
  2. Flagler Reservoir State Wildlife AreaKit Carson County, best mid September · 20 checklists that week, 602 in all27%
  3. Crow Valley ParkWeld County, best the second week of October · 20 checklists that week, 2,041 in all19%
  4. Lake Pueblo State Park (Trustees Pueblo WW Reservoir Number 2)Pueblo County, best late December · 24 checklists that week, 694 in all18%
  5. San Juan National ForestMontezuma County, best late September · 28 checklists that week, 583 in all17%
  6. Yampa River PreserveRoutt County, best early September · 25 checklists that week, 203 in all17%

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

Best time of day

In Colorado, the Sharp-shinned Hawk is most often listed on checklists started between 8 and 10 am (1.4% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%1.5%12 am: too few checklists (512) to judge1 am: too few checklists (468) to judge2 am: too few checklists (513) to judge3 am: too few checklists (656) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1918) to judge5 am: too few checklists (16045) to judge6 am: 1.0% of 71991 checklists7 am: 1.3% of 159189 checklists8 am: 1.4% of 177206 checklists9 am: 1.4% of 165269 checklists10 am: 1.2% of 141029 checklists11 am: 1.1% of 115283 checklists12 pm: 1.1% of 96068 checklists1 pm: 1.1% of 89512 checklists2 pm: 1.1% of 86319 checklists3 pm: 1.0% of 82496 checklists4 pm: 0.9% of 71648 checklists5 pm: 0.9% of 52445 checklists6 pm: 0.5% of 40199 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (24246) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (7986) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2004) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (888) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (450) 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
January2.0%1.8%1.8%1.7%
February1.5%1.1%1.2%1.2%
March1.1%1.0%1.0%1.1%
April1.1%1.2%1.6%1.6%
May1.2%0.8%0.7%0.5%
June0.5%0.4%0.4%0.3%
July0.3%0.3%0.2%0.3%
August0.4%0.4%0.6%0.9%
September1.1%1.5%1.6%1.7%
October1.7%1.8%1.7%1.6%
November1.7%1.5%1.6%1.6%
December1.8%1.8%1.9%1.7%

Neighboring states

  • Wyoming: arrives mid August, 1 week earlier than Colorado
  • New Mexico: arrives late August, in the same week than Colorado
  • Utah: arrives the second week of August, 2 weeks earlier than Colorado
  • Nebraska: arrives the second week of September, 2 weeks later than Colorado

Common questions

When do Sharp-shinned Hawks arrive in Colorado?
Sharp-shinned Hawks are winter birds in Colorado: they arrive in late August, peak in the second week of January (1.9% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of May.
When do Sharp-shinned Hawks leave Colorado?
Most Sharp-shinned Hawks have left Colorado by the second week of May, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Sharp-shinned Hawk in Colorado?
The Sharp-shinned Hawk is reported most often in the second week of January, on about 1.9% of Colorado checklists.
Where in Colorado are Sharp-shinned Hawks seen most often?
By county, Rio Blanco County, Baca County, and Otero County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Sharp-shinned Hawk (counties with at least 200 checklists).