Typical Accipiter hawk. Adult slaty gray above and finely barred with brownish orange below. Smaller and more compact-looking than Eurasian Sparrowhawk. Soaring adults can be distinguished from Chinese Sparrowhawk by the lack of dark wingtips and striped (instead of solidly pale) underwings. In all plumages, heavily marked underwing coverts distinguish this species from Chinese Sparrowhawk. Breeds in a variety of forested hill and lowland habitats; wintering birds can also be found in more open habitats, such as forest edge and fields.