WhenToBird

Botaurus lentiginosus · Ardeidae

When Do American Bitterns Arrive in Michigan?

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

American Bitterns arrive in Michigan in mid April, peak in late May (1.3% of checklists), and most are gone by late August.

When to look

First arrivalsApr 15-21mid April
Common byApr 15-21mid April
PeakMay 22-31late May
Most gone byAug 22-31late August

Best: late May. First arrivals mid April; most are gone by late August. Peak: on about 1.3% of Michigan checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marnot usually seen
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Juluncommon
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octrare
  11. Novrare
  12. Decnot usually seen

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

0%0.5%1%1.5%Jan 1-7: 0% of 38160 checklistsJan 8-14: 0% of 24696 checklistsJan 15-21: 0% of 23771 checklistsJan 22-31: 0% of 31347 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.1% of 23225 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.1% of 27398 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0% of 36606 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0% of 27127 checklistsMar 1-7: 0% of 29700 checklistsMar 8-14: 0% of 31587 checklistsMar 15-21: 0% of 32118 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.1% of 47777 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.1% of 38557 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.3% of 42207 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.4% of 42759 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.8% of 64458 checklistsMay 1-7: 1.0% of 60998 checklistsMay 8-14: 1.0% of 72091 checklistsMay 15-21: 1.5% of 59058 checklistsMay 22-31: 1.1% of 64724 checklistsJun 1-7: 1.1% of 35990 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.8% of 32595 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.8% of 30017 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.6% of 33988 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.4% of 28708 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.4% of 25175 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.4% of 24084 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.4% of 33522 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.4% of 25098 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.3% of 24353 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.3% of 25059 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.4% of 37489 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.2% of 28410 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.2% of 27887 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.2% of 26614 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.2% of 32557 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.1% of 25844 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.1% of 27741 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.1% of 24693 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.1% of 32460 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.1% of 23660 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.1% of 21542 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.1% of 19922 checklistsNov 22-30: 0% of 25069 checklistsDec 1-7: 0% of 18272 checklistsDec 8-14: 0% of 18961 checklistsDec 15-21: 0% of 24171 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.1% of 30908 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 Michigan 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 Michigan

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Bay CountyBest the second week of June · 291 checklists that week, 16,522 in all8.7%
  2. Tuscola CountyBest mid June · 114 checklists that week, 5,683 in all7.7%
  3. Chippewa CountyBest the second week of June · 717 checklists that week, 28,128 in all7.3%
  4. Baraga CountyBest the second week of May · 185 checklists that week, 3,662 in all7.2%
  5. Saginaw CountyBest late May · 279 checklists that week, 8,573 in all7.1%
  6. Luce CountyBest early June · 133 checklists that week, 2,575 in all6.9%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Sturgeon River Sloughs State Wildlife AreaBaraga County, best mid May · 34 checklists that week, 258 in all56%
  2. Munuscong State Wildlife Management Area (Little Munuscong River)Chippewa County, best mid May · 25 checklists that week, 264 in all46%
  3. Huron National ForestIosco County, best the second week of May · 229 checklists that week, 2,426 in all44%
  4. Munuscong State Wildlife Management AreaChippewa County, best late May · 135 checklists that week, 1,008 in all40%
  5. St. Johns Marsh State Wildlife AreaSt. Clair County, best late July · 21 checklists that week, 671 in all37%

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

Best time of day

In Michigan, the American Bittern is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 pm (0.9% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%1.5%12 am: too few checklists (712) to judge1 am: too few checklists (592) to judge2 am: too few checklists (532) to judge3 am: too few checklists (516) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1592) to judge5 am: too few checklists (6849) to judge6 am: 1.2% of 39298 checklists7 am: 0.5% of 120344 checklists8 am: 0.3% of 180109 checklists9 am: 0.3% of 171966 checklists10 am: 0.2% of 156332 checklists11 am: 0.2% of 134964 checklists12 pm: 0.2% of 120967 checklists1 pm: 0.2% of 113852 checklists2 pm: 0.2% of 110773 checklists3 pm: 0.2% of 105530 checklists4 pm: 0.3% of 100958 checklists5 pm: 0.4% of 80085 checklists6 pm: 0.7% of 62883 checklists7 pm: 1.1% of 44912 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (21062) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (5920) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1629) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (775) 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
January0%0%0%0%
February0.1%0.1%0%0%
March0%0%0%0.1%
April0.1%0.3%0.4%0.8%
May1.0%1.0%1.5%1.1%
June1.1%0.8%0.8%0.6%
July0.4%0.4%0.4%0.4%
August0.4%0.3%0.3%0.4%
September0.2%0.2%0.2%0.2%
October0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
November0.1%0.1%0.1%0%
December0%0%0%0.1%

Neighboring states

  • Wisconsin: arrives mid April, in the same week than Michigan
  • District of Columbia: arrives mid September, 20 weeks later than Michigan
  • New York: arrives early April, 2 weeks earlier than Michigan
  • New Jersey: arrives early September, 18 weeks later than Michigan

Common questions

When do American Bitterns arrive in Michigan?
American Bitterns arrive in Michigan in mid April, peak in late May (1.3% of checklists), and most are gone by late August.
When do American Bitterns leave Michigan?
Most American Bitterns have left Michigan by late August, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a American Bittern in Michigan?
The American Bittern is reported most often in late May, on about 1.3% of Michigan checklists.
Where in Michigan are American Bitterns seen most often?
By county, Bay County, Tuscola County, and Chippewa County have the highest peak reporting rates for the American Bittern (counties with at least 200 checklists).