Two North American representatives of this group are the sharp-shinned hawk and Cooper's hawk. These are the principal avian predators on small birds. Most of the other North American hawks are members of a second large genus. Other species include the common black hawk, which barely reaches north to the southwestern United States, and Harris's hawk, which is also primarily tropical but occurs north to central Texas. Harris's hawk is mostly dark brown, but with conspicuous chestnut shoulders and wing linings, and a white tail crossed with a broad black band.
All hawks feed on living prey but tend to specialize partly based on size.
Thus the smallest hawks feed primarily on insects, and the so-called bird hawks choose their feathered prey in accordance with their own relative size. Some hawks prefer cold-blooded animals, such as amphibians and reptiles. The majority feed principally on appropriately sized mammals, although they will take other prey opportunistically. Most hawks build bulky nests of twigs, bark, and leaves high in trees. The eggs are usually white or bluish-white, variably blotched and spotted with shades of brown.