A Hawk Is Hunting at My Bird Feeder: What It Means and What to Do
Cooper's and Sharp-shinned Hawks treat feeders as hunting grounds, especially in winter. What's legal, what's humane, and how to rearrange the yard so songbirds have a fair chance.
7 min read · Updated 2026-09-28
- Usual suspects
- Cooper's Hawk and Sharp-shinned Hawk
- Legal status
- Protected — MBTA (U.S.) and MBCA (Canada)
- Quick fix
- Pause feeding 5–7 days
- Cover distance
- Dense shrubs within about 10 ft of feeders
Why hawks come to feeders
A feeder concentrates small birds in a predictable spot, and a few bird-eating hawks learn to take advantage. In most of the U.S. and southern Canada, the hawk ambushing your chickadees is a Cooper's Hawk or a Sharp-shinned Hawk. Both are accipiters — short-winged, long-tailed forest hunters built for bursts of speed and quick turns through branches.
Hawk visits spike in winter, when natural cover is bare, prey is concentrated at feeders, and northern hawks have moved south. The same season sees hawks crashing into windows while chasing prey.
Hawks are protected
All native hawks are protected under the U.S. Migratory Bird Treaty Act and Canada's Migratory Birds Convention Act. Harassing, trapping or harming them is illegal. More importantly, predation is a normal part of a healthy bird community, and hawks remove birds that are sick or slow. The goal isn't to stop hawks from hunting everywhere; it's to make your yard less of a trap.
Step 1: pause feeding
If a hawk is visiting daily, take feeders down or stop refilling them for five to seven days. Songbirds disperse to other food sources, the hawk finds fewer easy meals and shifts its hunting route. When feeders go back up, birds return within days. This is the fastest, most effective and entirely humane response.
Step 2: fix cover distance
Small birds survive hawk attacks by diving into dense cover that a hawk can't maneuver through. Feeders in the middle of an open lawn leave them with nowhere to go.
- Place feeders within about 10 ft of dense shrubs, evergreens or a brush pile.
- Choose thorny or twiggy natives — hawthorn, eastern red cedar, holly, viburnum — that give protection.
- Avoid placing cover so close and so low that cats can ambush from it; 5–10 ft is a good compromise.
Step 3: reduce window strikes during chases
Songbirds fleeing a hawk often hit windows, and so do the hawks. Keep feeders either within 3 ft of a window (so birds can't build up speed) or more than 30 ft away, and treat reflective panes with exterior markings spaced no more than 2 in apart.
Step 4: rethink ground feeding
Birds feeding on open ground or on wide platform feeders are more exposed than birds on hanging feeders near cover. If hawk pressure is high, cut back on scattered seed and use caged feeders, which also protect small birds from larger species.
Telling the two hawks apart
Cooper's Hawks are crow-sized with a large head and a rounded tail tipped with a broad white band. Sharp-shinned Hawks are jay-sized with a small head and a square or notched tail. Sizes overlap between the sexes, so rely on tail shape and head size. See our side-by-side comparison for a full breakdown.
What doesn't work
Fake owls and hawk silhouettes quickly lose any effect as birds habituate. Noise makers disturb songbirds as much as hawks. And trapping or relocating hawks is illegal without federal and state or provincial permits.
Cooper's Hawk vs Sharp-shinned Hawk: full comparison →
Frequently asked
Is it legal to scare hawks away from my feeder?
Hawks are federally protected. Actions that harass, trap or harm them are illegal. Pausing feeding and adding cover are legal and effective.
How long should I take my feeders down if a hawk is hunting?
About five to seven days is usually enough for the hawk to shift its hunting route.
Do fake owls keep hawks away?
No. Birds, including hawks, get used to static decoys within days.