Massachusetts has hawks! Take a drive or go for a walk anywhere in Mass., and it won’t be long before you see a hawk. You might even see two or three!
Hawks in Massachusetts can be migrants; some live in the state all year long, and others only visit in the winter.
Which ones can you see? Learn about the hawks of Massachusetts in this article!
Most Common Hawks in Massachusetts
In Massachusetts, there are several species of hawks. Which of those species were seen in 2022 and 2023?
To find out, we researched Massachusetts hawk sightings in the eBird platform and made a list of the most commonly seen species.
Since hawk identification can be a challenge, we also included key field marks and information about their behavior. Finally, to help a little bit more, we arranged species from most common to least common.
We hope it helps with your hawk-watching in Massachusetts!
Red-tailed Hawk
Red-Tailed hawk (Juvenile) © Greg Lavaty.
Scientific name: Buteo jamaicensis
Speed: 20-40 miles per hour
Length & Weight: 19 inches, 2.4 pounds
Wingspan: 49 inches
Call: “keeeyah!”
The Red-tailed Hawk is a big and bulky hawk with dark brown upperparts and long, broad wings. Adults have broad reddish tails and both sexes are similar (although females are larger than males).
In the east, adults have pale underparts with dark marks on their belly, but western birds can be dark brown, buff, or reddish-brown below. Young birds have brown tails with dark barring.
In flight, all Red-tailed Hawks show a large, somewhat square-shaped, pale area near the tips of their wings.
This species preys on a variety of small animals, including squirrels, rats, snakes, and birds. It catches prey by swooping down from a perch or from soaring flight.
They use a wide range of habitats in Alaska and the USA, much of Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and parts of Central America. Red-tailed Hawks are most commonly seen hawks in Massachusetts.
Key Identifications:
- Large, hefty hawk with a reddish tail and dark marks on its pale belly.
- Preys on small mammals, snakes, and birds.
- Builds a bulky stick nest high in a tree.
- Makes loud, jay-like, ringing calls, “keeeyah!”.
In most places, Red-tailed Hawks are seen perched next to and soaring over roads and fields. The “raptor scream” often heard in movies and television shows is the call of the Red-tailed Hawk.
Cooper’s Hawk
Scientific name: Accipiter cooperi
Speed: 21-55 miles per hour
Length & Weight: 16.5 inches, 1 pound
Wingspan: 31 inches
Call: “kek kek kek kek kek!”
The Cooper’s Hawk is a fair-sized hawk with a long, rounded tail and a blocky, square-shaped head. Adults are blue-gray above and have orange barring below.
Both sexes look similar although females are larger. They also often show a dark cap, have pale grayish on their face and side of the neck, and dark banding on their tail.
Young birds are shaped like adults but are dark brown above, have paler brown on the head, and fine dark streaking on pale underparts.
In flight, this species uses its rounded wings to make a few deep flaps followed by a brief glide.
The Cooper’s Hawk preys on doves and other medium-sized birds, and small mammals. It usually catches them on the ground and frequently attacks birds at feeders.
This species lives in a variety of wooded and semi-wooded habitats in southern Canada, most of the USA, including Massachusetts, and in parts of Mexico.
Key Identifications:
- Fair-sized hawk with orange barring below, blue gray above, and a long rounded tail.
- Preys on small mammals and starlings and dove-sized birds in woodlands, parks, and towns.
- Builds a bulky stick nest high in a tree.
- Usually quiet but when breeding, it makes a loud barking call, “kek kek kek kek kek!”
In many areas, this hawk has become adapted to people and catches birds and small mammals in woodlands and towns. The pesticide DDT caused large declines in Cooper’s Hawk populations in the 1950s and 60s but, since then, this species has regained its numbers and become a common bird.
Red-shouldered Hawk
© Tom Grey
Scientific name: Buteo lineatus
Speed: 18-34 miles per hour
Length & Weight: 17 inches, 1.4 pounds
Wingspan: 40 inches
Call: “keer keer keer keer keer!”
The Red-shouldered Hawk is a medium-sized hawk with reddish-orange underparts and shoulder, and black and white on its wings and tail.
Both sexes are similar, but as with most raptors, females are larger than males. Young birds are brown above and have dark streaks on pale underparts.
In flight, all ages of this hawk species are best recognized by their longish, black and white tail and long wings with a pale crescent-shaped mark near the tip of the wing.
Red-shouldered Hawks prey on snakes, frogs, and other small animals. They forage by waiting on a perch and then swooping down to catch the animal on the ground.
The Red-shouldered Hawk lives in a variety of woodland habitats in southeastern Canada, the eastern USA, including Massachusetts, California, southeastern Oregon, and Baja California, Mexico.
Key Identifications:
- Medium-sized, colorful hawk with reddish-orange underparts and shoulder, and black and white upperparts and tail.
- Forages for snakes and other small animals on the ground in woodland habitats.
- Builds a bulky stick nest high in a tree.
- Makes loud, jay-like, ringing calls, “keer keer keer keer keer!”
The Red-shouldered Hawk lives in a variety of wooded areas and even wooded neighborhoods in California and Florida. This species can join American Crows to harass and chase away Great Horned Owls.
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Scientific name: Accipiter striatus
Speed: 16-60 miles per hour
Length & Weight: 11 inches, 5 ounces
Wingspan: 23 inches
Call: “kew kew kew kew kew kew kew kew”
The Sharp-shinned Hawk is a small hawk with a long, rectangular tail and rounded wings. Adults have blue-gray upperparts, orange barring on their underparts, and dark bands on their tail.
Females are larger than males and young birds are dark brown above with thick brown streaks on pale underparts.
This species flies with several quick wing beats followed by brief glides. When flying, its head doesn’t stick out as much as a Cooper’s Hawk and it shows a square-tipped tail.
The Sharp-shinned Hawk preys on small birds up to the size of an American Robin. It mostly catches birds around the same size as sparrows, warblers, and vireos by quickly flying and catching them in vegetation.
Sharp-shinned Hawks live in wooded habitats in Alaska, much of Canada and the USA, Mexico, parts of Central America, the Caribbean, and parts of South America.
Key Identifications:
- Small hawk with rounded wings and a long, rectangular tail.
- Preys on small birds in woodland habitats.
- Builds bulky stick nest high in a conifer.
- Usually quiet but on breeding grounds makes falcon-like, repeated ringing calls “kew kew kew kew kew kew kew kew”.
This small hawk often attacks small birds at feeders. The Sharp-shinned Hawk gets its name from its thin legs that have angled, “sharp” shins.
Broad-winged Hawk
Scientific name: Buteo platypterus
Speed: 20-40 miles per hour
Length & Weight: 15 inches, 14 ounces
Wingspan: 34 inches
Call: “sipeeeeeeeee”
The Broad-winged Hawk is a smallish raptor around the same size as a crow. Adults are dark brown above, have dark, reddish-brown barring below, and a broad tail with a few wide, white bands.
Both sexes look the same and also have a thick dark mark on each side of their throat, although females are larger. Young birds have dark brown streaks on pale underparts.
In flight, this species often soars, shows a broad black and white tail, and has long wings shaped like a “paring knife” that also have a dark trailing edge.
This raptor preys on voles, frogs, insects, and other small animals. It catches food by waiting on a perch and then quickly swooping down to the ground.
This small hawk breeds in forest habitats in central and southeastern Canada and much of the eastern USA. It winters in southern Florida and Mexico south to Bolivia.
Key Identifications:
- Chunky, smallish, crow-sized hawk with a few white bands on its tail and underparts with brown barring or streaks.
- Preys on insects and small animals in woodland habitats.
- Builds a bulky nest high in a tree.
- Makes a high-pitched call, “sipeeeeeeeee”
This chunky, crow-sized hawk often soars above and near woodland habitats. In southern Texas and some other places, thousands of Broad-winged Hawks can be seen as they migrate between breeding and tropical wintering grounds.
Rough-legged Hawk (Rare)
Photograph © Tom Grey
The Rough-legged Hawk is a long-winged hawk with a black and white tail. There are two color morphs; both with broad white patches near dark wing tips, and a longish pale tail with a broad black tip.
Pale females and juveniles are pale gray-brown with a black belly and black “wrists” in their wings. Pale adult males are more cold gray, have less black on their belly, and heavily streaked breasts.
Dark females and juveniles are dark brown except for their tail and flight feathers. Dark adult males are black except for their flight feathers and tail. In flight, this species holds its wings in a shallow “V.”
Rough-legged Hawks soar and hover over open fields where they prey on voles and other small animals.
The Rough-legged Hawk breeds in tundra in Alaska, northern Canada, and northern Eurasia, and winters in open fields in southern Canada, the northern, central, and western USA, including Massachusetts, and Europe and Asia.
Key Identifications:
- Big hawk with a longish black and white tail, and long wings with broad white patches near the dark wing tips.
- Preys on rodents and other small animals in wide open habitats.
- Builds a big, bulky nest on cliffs and rocky outcroppings in tundra.
- Makes a loud, clear descending call, “reeaaaauh!”.
Rough-legged Hawks hover and soar over weedy fields and other open habitats to hunt for rodents and birds. This species is one of the only hawks in North America that has feathers on its legs.
Northern Goshawk (Very Rare)
© Andrey Gulivanov
The Northern Goshawk is a large, hefty hawk with a long, banded tail and rounded wings. Adults look similar, but females can be 25% larger. Both sexes are gray above and white below with fine gray barring. They also have a dark cap and cheek, red eyes, and a white eyebrow.
Young birds are dark brown above with some pale spotting, have pale eyebrows, uneven dark bands on their tail, and heavily streaked underparts.
In flight, Northern Goshawks make a few deep flaps followed by long glides.
This powerful raptor preys on squirrels, other small mammals, and grouse, woodpeckers, and many other mid-sized birds. They catch prey on the ground or by quickly flying through vegetation to grasp the unlucky animal with their talons.
In Massachusetts, Northern Goshawks live in coniferous and other wild wooded habitats.
Key Identifications:
- Hefty, long-tailed hawk with gray plumage or brown, streaked plumage, and a white eyebrow.
- Preys on fair-sized birds and mammals in coniferous forest habitats.
- Builds a bulky, stick nest high in a tree.
- Makes a repeated call, “kip kip kip kip kip kip kip kip kip kip kip”.
Pairs of Northern Goshawks hunt for medium-sized birds and mammals in coniferous forest habitats. This powerful raptor is very defensive of its nest and won’t hesitate to attack people and animals that venture too close.
Swainson’s Hawk (Very Rare)
Scientific name: Buteo swainsoni
Speed: 15-60 miles per hour
Length & Weight: 19 inches, 1.9 pounds
Wingspan: 51 inches
Call: “eeeah!”
The Swainson’s Hawk is a big hawk with dark-brown upperparts, long, pointed wings with dark flight feathers, and a broad tail with fine dark barring and a dark tip. Males and females are similar, although females are larger.
Adults can have a white throat, front, wing linings, and underparts with a red-brown breast. They can also have a white throat and front, and reddish brown underparts and wing linings, or be entirely dark brown.
Young birds can have dark markings on pale underparts or be mostly dark below.
This species catches grasshoppers and small animals on the ground. It forages by soaring and then swooping down or walking on the ground.
Swainson’s Hawks breed in grasslands, meadows, and other open habitats in central and western Canada and the USA. They migrate through the central USA and winter in grasslands in Argentina. A few also migrate through and winter in southern Florida.
Key Identifications:
- Large, long-winged hawk with dark flight feathers and a broad tail with fine dark banding and a dark tip.
- Feeds on insects and small animals in prairies and other open habitats.
- Builds a bulky stick nest in a tree.
- Makes a loud, descending, single note, “eeeah!”.
Swainson’s Hawks soar above and perch on trees and on the ground in prairies and other open habitats. This species migrates from western North America all the way to grasslands in Argentina.
Hawks in Massachusetts – Frequently Asked Questions
What type of hawks live in Massachusetts?
Several types of hawks live in Massachusetts. The most common species are Red-tailed Hawk, Cooper’s Hawk, and Red-shouldered Hawk.
What is the biggest hawk in Massachusetts?
The biggest hawk in Massachusetts is the Rough-legged Hawk. This raptor is 21 inches long and has a 53 inch wingspan.
What is the largest bird of prey in Massachusetts?
The largest bird of prey in Massachusetts is the Bald Eagle. This big raptor is 31 inches long, and has a wingspan of 80 inches.
Are there falcons in Massachusetts?
Yes, there are falcons in Massachusetts. Three species are regular in the state and one species, the Gyrfalcon, is a rare winter visitor.
Do owls live in Massachusetts?
Massachusetts has eight owl species, including the common Barred Owls and Great Horned Owls, and the not so common Barn Owl!