WhenToBird

Birds in North Dakota

Winter Birds in North Dakota

The most likely birds in North Dakota in winter are Black-capped Chickadee (50%), White-breasted Nuthatch (38%), and House Sparrow (35%). 54 species show up on at least 1 in 100 checklists.

Percent of complete checklists in North Dakota that reported the bird during these weeks, 2016–2025 (18,059 checklists). It shows how likely you are to list the bird, not how many there are. Methods.

Common this season

Share of checklists
  1. 1Black-capped Chickadee50%
  2. 2White-breasted Nuthatch38%
  3. 3House Sparrow35%
  4. 4Downy Woodpecker32%
  5. 5Hairy Woodpecker25%
  6. 6Dark-eyed Junco24%
  7. 7Blue Jay23%
  8. 8House Finch23%
  9. 9American Crow20%
  10. 10Red-breasted Nuthatch17%
  11. 11Eurasian Collared-Dove16%
  12. 12European Starling13%
  13. 13Redpoll12%
  14. 14Pine Siskin12%
  15. 15Canada Goose12%
  16. 16Rock Pigeon11%

Arriving

New in winter
  • Horned Larkfirst arrivals early February, peaks the second week of March
  • Greater White-fronted Goosefirst arrivals late February, peaks late March
  • Cackling Goosefirst arrivals late February, peaks mid March

Leaving

Gone by the end of winter
  • Blue Jaymost gone by mid February
  • White-throated Sparrowmost gone by early February
  • Harris's Sparrowmost gone by late February
  • Bald Eaglemost gone by mid December
  • Hooded Mergansermost gone by early December
  • Snow Goosemost gone by mid December
  • Tundra Swanmost gone by the second week of December
  • Lapland Longspurmost gone by early January
  • Golden-crowned Kingletmost gone by early January
  • American Herring Gullmost gone by the second week of January
  • Wild Turkeymost gone by mid February
  • Bonaparte's Gullmost gone by the second week of December

Less common

Share of checklists
  1. 17Ring-necked Pheasant8.8%
  2. 18Bald Eagle8.5%
  3. 19American Robin8.1%
  4. 20American Goldfinch8.0%
  5. 21Mallard7.8%
  6. 22Northern Flicker6.2%
  7. 23Red-bellied Woodpecker5.9%
  8. 24Black-billed Magpie5.0%
  9. 25Purple Finch4.7%
  10. 26Northern Cardinal4.6%
  11. 27Cedar Waxwing4.4%
  12. 28Common Goldeneye4.3%
  13. 29Great Horned Owl3.9%
  14. 30Horned Lark3.8%
  15. 31Northern Shrike3.2%
  16. 32Common Merganser3.0%

Rare but possible

Under 3% of checklists
  1. 33Pileated Woodpecker2.8%
  2. 34Rough-legged Hawk2.7%
  3. 35Common Raven2.6%
  4. 36Sharp-tailed Grouse2.6%
  5. 37Northern Saw-whet Owl2.5%
  6. 38Wild Turkey2.5%
  7. 39Townsend's Solitaire2.3%
  8. 40Gray Partridge2.2%
  9. 41Snow Bunting2.1%
  10. 42Brown Creeper2.1%
  11. 43White-winged Crossbill1.9%
  12. 44Red Crossbill1.9%
  13. 45American Tree Sparrow1.7%
  14. 46Merlin1.4%
  15. 47Common Grackle1.3%
  16. 48Sharp-shinned Hawk1.3%
  17. 49American Herring Gull1.3%
  18. 50Snowy Owl1.2%
  19. 51White-throated Sparrow1.2%
  20. 52Cackling Goose1.1%
  21. 53Lapland Longspur1.1%
  22. 54Red-winged Blackbird1.0%