Duck Hawk vs Sharp-shinned Hawk

Falco peregrinus compared with Accipiter striatus

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Duck Hawk	Sharp-shinned Hawk
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Chordata (Chordates)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class same	Aves (Birds)	Aves (Birds)
Order	Falconiformes (Falconiformes)	Accipitriformes (Hawks & Eagles)
Family	Falconidae	Accipitridae (Hawks & Eagles)
Genus	Falco	Accipiter
Species	Falco peregrinus	Accipiter striatus

Evolutionary Relationship

Duck Hawk and Sharp-shinned Hawk share a common ancestor at the Class level: Aves. (Birds)

View Class: Aves

Conservation Status

Duck Hawk

LC — Least Concern

Population: ~140.0K

Trend: Increasing ↑

Sharp-shinned Hawk

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Duck Hawk	Sharp-shinned Hawk
Diet	Carnivore	—
Average Lifespan	15 years	—
Average Length	48 cm	—
Average Weight	1.0 kg	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Duck Hawk

Habitat

Typically found in diverse ecosystems where prey species are available.

Range

Widely distributed across Europe (7 countries), North America (United States), and South America (Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela).

Sharp-shinned Hawk

Habitat

Typically found in various aerial, terrestrial, and aquatic environments.

Range

Distributed across Colombia, Ecuador, Norway, United States, and Venezuela.

Duck Hawk

The fastest animal on the planet, peregrine falcons achieve aerial dive speeds exceeding 320 km/h when stooping on prey, stunning or killing birds in flight with a blow from their feet. Found on every continent except Antarctica in diverse habitats from Arctic tundra to tropical rainforest. Nearly extinct in North America and Europe from DDT poisoning in the 1960s–70s, peregrines recovered dramatically following pesticide bans and successful urban nesting programs.

Sharp-shinned Hawk

Sharp-shinned Hawk (Accipiter striatus) is classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List. Widespread and abundant across its range, with stable populations and no immediate conservation concerns.