The 10-year North American migration count trends for the American Goshawk suggests widespread population declines occurred across the continent as 73.5% of 34 total migration sites recorded a decline over the past decade. The other 26.4% of the count sites recorded stable counts and no sites showed increasing counts. The majority of the declines have been observed in the East, with 82% of Eastern sites reporting declines (see pie charts and trend maps below). These data are consistent with the 20-year count trends, which reflect significant declines in the East over this longer span. The Central and West Regions have observed both declining and stable counts during the last 20 years. Hawk Ridge, Minnesota, which has the highest average count of Goshawks, 206, showed a 7.6% decline in goshawks per year during the past twenty years. The approximately 10-yr irruptive pattern in the Goshawk data from the 1970s through early 2000s at Hawk Ridge and Hawk Mountain has all but disappeared.

The American Goshawk is a Species of Least Concern on the global IUCN Red List, but it is listed as a sensitive species by the U.S. Forest Service in the Pacific Southwest, Southwest, Intermountain, Rocky Mountains, and Alaska Regions. Currently, there are no designations for this species in the Northern, Eastern, and Pacific Northwest regions, but some states have designated it as a Sensitive Species warranting more investigation and some eastern states list it as threatened or endangered. This species is listed as threatened in Mexico.

Research is required to determine the cause of widespread observed declines and shift from the former irruptive pattern of migratory movements. American Goshawks rely on large mature forests and may be vulnerable to nest disturbance, nest predation, environmental contaminants, habitat loss, climate change, and new diseases such as West Nile Virus.