WhenToBird

Botaurus lentiginosus · Ardeidae

When Do American Bitterns Arrive in New York?

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

American Bitterns arrive in New York in early April, peak in early May (1.1% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of September.

When to look

First arrivalsApr 1-7early April
Common byApr 1-7early April
PeakMay 1-7early May
Most gone bySep 8-14the second week of September

Best: early May. First arrivals early April; most are gone by the second week of September. Peak: on about 1.1% of New York checklists.

  1. Janrare
  2. Febrare
  3. Marrare
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julcommon
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octuncommon
  11. Novrare
  12. Decrare

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

0%0.5%1%1.5%Jan 1-7: 0.1% of 66410 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.1% of 49310 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.1% of 49919 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.1% of 62513 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.1% of 43526 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.1% of 49753 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.1% of 65147 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.1% of 50173 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.1% of 50325 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.1% of 55371 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.1% of 56293 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.2% of 82677 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.2% of 65295 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.4% of 73080 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.7% of 73857 checklistsApr 22-30: 1.1% of 106093 checklistsMay 1-7: 1.0% of 102772 checklistsMay 8-14: 1.0% of 110051 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.9% of 94797 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.9% of 101272 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.7% of 59471 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.8% of 55497 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.6% of 51761 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.4% of 59219 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.4% of 48226 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.5% of 42315 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.4% of 40637 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.3% of 57183 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.3% of 40461 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.3% of 39880 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.3% of 41146 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.3% of 63381 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.3% of 48640 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.2% of 47882 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.2% of 49063 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.1% of 57906 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.2% of 48447 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.1% of 51901 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.2% of 46717 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.1% of 61992 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.2% of 44593 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.1% of 42566 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.1% of 39675 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.1% of 51197 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.1% of 36567 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.1% of 37254 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.1% of 43754 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.1% of 62470 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 New York 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.

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Where in New York

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Clinton CountyBest the second week of May · 362 checklists that week, 8,764 in all10%
  2. St. Lawrence CountyBest early May · 1130 checklists that week, 32,234 in all9.2%
  3. Genesee CountyBest early June · 574 checklists that week, 17,726 in all9.0%
  4. Jefferson CountyBest early May · 905 checklists that week, 26,171 in all8.8%
  5. Sullivan CountyBest the second week of May · 1263 checklists that week, 28,620 in all6.2%
  6. Lewis CountyBest late April · 193 checklists that week, 5,920 in all6.1%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Perch River WmaJefferson County, best early May · 23 checklists that week, 713 in all64%
  2. Ausable Marsh Wma (Dead Creek)Clinton County, best the second week of May · 22 checklists that week, 427 in all52%
  3. Hedgehog PondHamilton County, best late May · 20 checklists that week, 352 in all49%
  4. Lower LakeSt. Lawrence County, best the second week of May · 28 checklists that week, 476 in all48%
  5. Round Pond (Sharon Station)Dutchess County, best late April · 43 checklists that week, 293 in all44%

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

Best time of day

In New York, the American Bittern is most often listed on checklists started between 5 and 7 pm (0.6% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%12 am: too few checklists (1146) to judge1 am: too few checklists (1055) to judge2 am: too few checklists (1121) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1353) to judge4 am: too few checklists (4785) to judge5 am: too few checklists (32052) to judge6 am: 0.7% of 124869 checklists7 am: 0.4% of 298506 checklists8 am: 0.3% of 337334 checklists9 am: 0.3% of 307787 checklists10 am: 0.2% of 270801 checklists11 am: 0.2% of 233238 checklists12 pm: 0.2% of 213830 checklists1 pm: 0.2% of 193321 checklists2 pm: 0.2% of 180741 checklists3 pm: 0.3% of 170348 checklists4 pm: 0.3% of 147224 checklists5 pm: 0.5% of 111962 checklists6 pm: 0.8% of 78261 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (44425) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (15648) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (4795) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (2454) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (1378) 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
January0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
February0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
March0.1%0.1%0.1%0.2%
April0.2%0.4%0.7%1.1%
May1.0%1.0%0.9%0.9%
June0.7%0.8%0.6%0.4%
July0.4%0.5%0.4%0.3%
August0.3%0.3%0.3%0.3%
September0.3%0.2%0.2%0.1%
October0.2%0.1%0.2%0.1%
November0.2%0.1%0.1%0.1%
December0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%

Neighboring states

  • New Jersey: arrives early September, 20 weeks later than New York
  • Vermont: arrives mid April, 2 weeks later than New York
  • New Hampshire: arrives mid April, 2 weeks later than New York
  • District of Columbia: arrives mid September, 22 weeks later than New York

Common questions

When do American Bitterns arrive in New York?
American Bitterns arrive in New York in early April, peak in early May (1.1% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of September.
When do American Bitterns leave New York?
Most American Bitterns have left New York by the second week of September, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a American Bittern in New York?
The American Bittern is reported most often in early May, on about 1.1% of New York checklists.
Where in New York are American Bitterns seen most often?
By county, Clinton County, St. Lawrence County, and Genesee County have the highest peak reporting rates for the American Bittern (counties with at least 200 checklists).