WhenToBird

Botaurus lentiginosus · Ardeidae

When Do American Bitterns Arrive in Florida?

Adult American Bittern
Photo: Kathy Richardson, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

American Bitterns are winter birds in Florida: they arrive in mid October, peak in late January (1.3% of checklists), and most are gone by early April.

When to look

First arrivalsOct 15-21mid October
Common byOct 15-21mid October
PeakJan 22-31late January
Most gone byApr 1-7early April

Best: late January. First arrivals mid October; most are gone by early April. Peak: on about 1.3% of Florida checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Mayrare
  6. Junnot usually seen
  7. Julnot usually seen
  8. Augrare
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

Darker months: more checklists report it. Outlined: peak month.

0%0.5%1%1.5%Jan 1-7: 1.0% of 74446 checklistsJan 8-14: 1.1% of 60074 checklistsJan 15-21: 1.2% of 62945 checklistsJan 22-31: 1.3% of 84954 checklistsFeb 1-7: 1.3% of 59204 checklistsFeb 8-14: 1.2% of 63259 checklistsFeb 15-21: 1.0% of 77150 checklistsFeb 22-28: 1.1% of 62850 checklistsMar 1-7: 1.1% of 58560 checklistsMar 8-14: 1.1% of 57756 checklistsMar 15-21: 1.0% of 54898 checklistsMar 22-31: 1.0% of 76702 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.6% of 55096 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.4% of 55892 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.2% of 59358 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.1% of 73124 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.1% of 47915 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.1% of 44114 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.1% of 31858 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.1% of 40723 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.1% of 31668 checklistsJun 8-14: 0% of 27802 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.1% of 26698 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.1% of 32346 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.1% of 23826 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.1% of 23071 checklistsJul 15-21: 0% of 22903 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.1% of 32952 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.1% of 25093 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.1% of 24888 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.1% of 26030 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.1% of 38612 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.1% of 31023 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.2% of 30022 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.2% of 31611 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.2% of 42108 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.3% of 36219 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.4% of 43113 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.6% of 40987 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.9% of 53457 checklistsNov 1-7: 1.2% of 38587 checklistsNov 8-14: 1.2% of 39208 checklistsNov 15-21: 1.2% of 39729 checklistsNov 22-30: 1.2% of 54965 checklistsDec 1-7: 1.1% of 42070 checklistsDec 8-14: 1.1% of 43424 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.9% of 50581 checklistsDec 22-31: 1.0% of 82405 checklistsJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Share of complete checklists reporting it, by week (4 per month). Grey bars: fewer than 10 checklists, not counted.

Frequency is the share of complete checklists in Florida that listed the bird, 2016–2025. It is not a head count, and it follows where and when people go birding. How to read it.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
today
Second week of November

Each county is shaded by the share of complete checklists there that listed the bird, blended with the weeks either side. Darker is more often. It follows where people watch birds, not how many birds there are. How to read it.

Embed this map on your site

Where in Florida

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Okeechobee CountyBest late October · 97 checklists that week, 5,380 in all11%
  2. Glades CountyBest mid November · 25 checklists that week, 6,182 in all6.9%
  3. Columbia CountyBest late November · 101 checklists that week, 5,568 in all6.9%
  4. Washington CountyBest mid March · 77 checklists that week, 1,773 in all5.9%
  5. Alachua CountyBest mid November · 2057 checklists that week, 120,363 in all5.9%
  6. Hendry CountyBest the second week of March · 83 checklists that week, 3,103 in all5.4%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Frog Pond/L-31 N Transition Lands (north)Miami-Dade County, best late October · 25 checklists that week, 551 in all60%
  2. three Forks Conservation AreaBrevard County, best late January · 21 checklists that week, 350 in all46%
  3. Paynes Prairie Preserve State ParkAlachua County, best the second week of November · 258 checklists that week, 12,716 in all33%
  4. Megginnis ArmLeon County, best late January · 22 checklists that week, 552 in all32%

Busy spots report more of everything; compare the checklist counts before you drive anywhere.

Best time of day

In Florida, the American Bittern is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (1.0% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%1.5%12 am: too few checklists (771) to judge1 am: too few checklists (771) to judge2 am: too few checklists (701) to judge3 am: too few checklists (752) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1378) to judge5 am: too few checklists (9462) to judge6 am: 1.0% of 94591 checklists7 am: 1.0% of 296183 checklists8 am: 0.9% of 319987 checklists9 am: 0.8% of 254830 checklists10 am: 0.6% of 209480 checklists11 am: 0.5% of 163924 checklists12 pm: 0.5% of 133478 checklists1 pm: 0.6% of 125012 checklists2 pm: 0.5% of 125299 checklists3 pm: 0.5% of 131072 checklists4 pm: 0.6% of 134410 checklists5 pm: 0.5% of 113373 checklists6 pm: 0.3% of 69886 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (37509) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (8966) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2093) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1485) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (862) to judge12a3a6a9a12p3p6p9p
Share of checklists started in each local hour that reported it. It reflects when people go birding as well as when birds are active. Grey hours have too few checklists (under 2% of the state’s, or under 200) to judge.
Week-by-week table
MonthDays 1-78-1415-2122-end
January1.0%1.1%1.2%1.3%
February1.3%1.2%1.0%1.1%
March1.1%1.1%1.0%1.0%
April0.6%0.4%0.2%0.1%
May0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
June0.1%0%0.1%0.1%
July0.1%0.1%0%0.1%
August0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
September0.1%0.2%0.2%0.2%
October0.3%0.4%0.6%0.9%
November1.2%1.2%1.2%1.2%
December1.1%1.1%0.9%1.0%

Neighboring states

  • District of Columbia: arrives mid September, 4 weeks earlier than Florida
  • New Jersey: arrives early September, 6 weeks earlier than Florida
  • New York: arrives early April, 22 weeks later than Florida
  • Michigan: arrives mid April, 24 weeks earlier than Florida

Common questions

When do American Bitterns arrive in Florida?
American Bitterns are winter birds in Florida: they arrive in mid October, peak in late January (1.3% of checklists), and most are gone by early April.
When do American Bitterns leave Florida?
Most American Bitterns have left Florida by early April, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a American Bittern in Florida?
The American Bittern is reported most often in late January, on about 1.3% of Florida checklists.
Where in Florida are American Bitterns seen most often?
By county, Okeechobee County, Glades County, and Columbia County have the highest peak reporting rates for the American Bittern (counties with at least 200 checklists).