West · Pacific Flyway
Hawks in Arizona
Hawks in Arizona come down to 15 species with regular eBird records, led by the Red-tailed Hawk. Together they account for 637,096 of the 20 million eBird records from 2020–2024 — 3.1% of everything reported in the state.
The full list: Red-tailed Hawk, Cooper's Hawk, Gray-lined Hawk, Northern Harrier, Swainson's Hawk, Harris's Hawk, Zone-tailed Hawk, Sharp-shinned Hawk, Common Black Hawk, Ferruginous Hawk, Red-shouldered Hawk, American Goshawk, Short-tailed Hawk, Broad-winged Hawk and Rough-legged Hawk. Hawks range from the crow-sized accipiters that ambush songbirds at feeders to the broad-winged soaring buteos you see circling over highways. Many are year-round residents; others pass through in large numbers during spring and fall migration.
Hawks in Arizona: every species, most-reported first
Every hawk with at least 25 eBird records in the state from 2020–2024, most-reported first. The status label is derived from each species’ own monthly share of all state records.
1. Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) — 240,035 records, 1.2% of the state’s eBird total; a year-round resident, reported in every month.
2. Cooper's Hawk (Astur cooperii) — 163,635 records, 0.8% of the state’s eBird total; a year-round resident, reported in every month.
3. Gray-lined Hawk (Buteo nitidus) — 50,724 records, 0.2% of the state’s eBird total; a summer visitor, present mainly from March to September and peaking in August.
4. Northern Harrier (Circus cyaneus) — 49,981 records, 0.2% of the state’s eBird total; a winter visitor, present mainly from October to March and peaking in January.
5. Swainson's Hawk (Buteo swainsoni) — 32,430 records, 0.2% of the state’s eBird total; a summer visitor, present mainly from April to September and peaking in August.
6. Harris's Hawk (Parabuteo unicinctus) — 26,319 records, 0.1% of the state’s eBird total; a year-round resident, reported in every month.
7. Zone-tailed Hawk (Buteo albonotatus) — 25,781 records, 0.1% of the state’s eBird total; a summer visitor, present mainly from March to September and peaking in April.
8. Sharp-shinned Hawk (Accipiter striatus) — 23,393 records, 0.1% of the state’s eBird total; a winter visitor, present mainly from September to April and peaking in October.
9. Common Black Hawk (Buteogallus anthracinus) — 13,278 records, 0.07% of the state’s eBird total; a summer visitor, present mainly from March to July and peaking in March.
10. Ferruginous Hawk (Buteo regalis) — 6,335 records, 0.03% of the state’s eBird total; a winter visitor, present mainly from November to February and peaking in January.
11. Red-shouldered Hawk (Buteo lineatus) — 1,565 records, 0.01% of the state’s eBird total; a year-round resident, reported in every month.
12. American Goshawk (Astur atricapillus) — 1,549 records, 0.01% of the state’s eBird total; a summer visitor, present mainly from April to November and peaking in July.
The remaining 3 species — Short-tailed Hawk, Broad-winged Hawk and Rough-legged Hawk — are recorded regularly but in smaller numbers; see the cards above for their status.
When to see hawks in Arizona
Adding up every species’ share of state eBird records month by month, hawks are most prominent in January, March and December and least in June and May. 4 of the 15 species are year-round — Red-tailed Hawk, Cooper's Hawk, Harris's Hawk and Red-shouldered Hawk — so there is no month without them.
Summer visitors. Gray-lined Hawk arrives around March and is mostly gone after September (peak August); Swainson's Hawk arrives around April and is mostly gone after September (peak August); Zone-tailed Hawk arrives around March and is mostly gone after September (peak April); Common Black Hawk arrives around March and is mostly gone after July (peak March); American Goshawk arrives around April and is mostly gone after November (peak July).
Winter visitors. Northern Harrier arrives around October and leaves after March (peak January); Sharp-shinned Hawk arrives around September and leaves after April (peak October); Ferruginous Hawk arrives around November and leaves after February (peak January).
Passage migrants. Short-tailed Hawk is reported mainly in March, July and August; Broad-winged Hawk is reported mainly in April, September and October; Rough-legged Hawk is reported mainly in January and February.
Attracting hawks to Arizona backyards
A hawk visiting a feeder is part of a healthy yard, not a problem to solve. Dense shrubs and brush piles within a few feet of feeders give small birds cover; if a hawk keys in on your feeder, taking it down for a few days usually moves the hawk along.
In Arizona the hawk most likely to turn up is the Red-tailed Hawk, a year-round resident, followed by the Cooper's Hawk. Its own page covers month-by-month activity and attraction tips for this state.
Hawks in Arizona: FAQ
How many species of hawks are there in Arizona?
15 species of hawks have regular eBird records in Arizona (at least 25 records in 2020–2024): Red-tailed Hawk, Cooper's Hawk, Gray-lined Hawk, Northern Harrier, Swainson's Hawk, Harris's Hawk, Zone-tailed Hawk, Sharp-shinned Hawk, Common Black Hawk, Ferruginous Hawk, Red-shouldered Hawk, American Goshawk, Short-tailed Hawk, Broad-winged Hawk and Rough-legged Hawk.
What is the most common hawk in Arizona?
The Red-tailed Hawk, with 240,035 eBird records in 2020–2024, followed by the Cooper's Hawk with 163,635. It is a year-round resident, reported in every month.
When is the best time to see hawks in Arizona?
January, March and December, when the combined share of Arizona eBird records belonging to hawks is highest. Summer visitors such as the Gray-lined Hawk arrive around March. Winter visitors such as the Northern Harrier arrive around October.
More birds in Arizona
Hawks in other states
Hawks in Arizona: sources
Every number on this page comes from the EOD – eBird Observation Dataset published by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and distributed through GBIF under a CC BY 4.0 license: Arizona records from 2020–2024, retrieved 2026-09-18. Species are drawn from the families Accipitridae; only species with at least 25 records are listed, and a species is called a year-round resident when its monthly share of state records stays above 30% of its own peak in ten or more months. “Records” are individual eBird observations, so they reflect how often birders report a species, not a population count.