hawk ID help

[Stoney Meadow Maple]

this isn't bothering my ducks.. but I thought someone might know. this was found in a fireplace in souther Vermont, it is alive and has flown off seemingly unharmed. my friend has large hands...for perspective..those might be XXL gloves. the head looks like a Kestrel, but the bars look like a Sharp-Shinned.... we can't figure out what it was. he notes that the neck feathers were extremely fluffy.
TIA!

 

[sourland]

It's a Kestrel or Sparrow Hawk. Neat little birds that feed primarily on meadow voles around here.

 

[tripletfeb]

X2 A beautiful kestrel!

 

[Stoney Meadow Maple]

thanks! I passed that along... I also looked up some spiritual meanings.. they weren't as optimistic I didn't think.. so I didn't pass them along

 

[cmom]

I agree Kestrel.

 

[cmom]

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/American_Kestrel/id

 

[cmom]

We used to see them quite often here but in the past several years not so much.