WhenToBird

Corvus brachyrhynchos · Corvidae

When Do American Crows Arrive in Nebraska?

Adult American Crow
Photo: Ken Kneidel, CC0 1.0 via iNaturalist

American Crows are in Nebraska all year, but most are here in winter: numbers build from early October, peak in late October (21% of checklists), and fall back by mid March. In the quietest week (mid July) they are still on about 8.2% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildOct 1-7early October
PeakOct 22-31late October
Fall back byMar 15-21mid March
FewestJul 15-21mid July

Best: late October. Here all year; numbers build from early October and fall back by mid March. Peak: on about 21% of Nebraska checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maycommon
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%10%20%30%Jan 1-7: 17% of 4210 checklistsJan 8-14: 17% of 2891 checklistsJan 15-21: 17% of 2685 checklistsJan 22-31: 16% of 3834 checklistsFeb 1-7: 16% of 2803 checklistsFeb 8-14: 15% of 3134 checklistsFeb 15-21: 16% of 4508 checklistsFeb 22-28: 20% of 3238 checklistsMar 1-7: 21% of 3862 checklistsMar 8-14: 19% of 4894 checklistsMar 15-21: 17% of 5862 checklistsMar 22-31: 14% of 8598 checklistsApr 1-7: 13% of 5530 checklistsApr 8-14: 12% of 5528 checklistsApr 15-21: 13% of 6091 checklistsApr 22-30: 14% of 8661 checklistsMay 1-7: 14% of 9842 checklistsMay 8-14: 13% of 10044 checklistsMay 15-21: 13% of 8863 checklistsMay 22-31: 12% of 10207 checklistsJun 1-7: 12% of 4922 checklistsJun 8-14: 9.7% of 4054 checklistsJun 15-21: 9.8% of 3680 checklistsJun 22-30: 9.6% of 4349 checklistsJul 1-7: 9.2% of 3277 checklistsJul 8-14: 8.1% of 2803 checklistsJul 15-21: 8.4% of 2842 checklistsJul 22-31: 8.1% of 3920 checklistsAug 1-7: 8.3% of 2981 checklistsAug 8-14: 9.1% of 2819 checklistsAug 15-21: 8.4% of 3179 checklistsAug 22-31: 10% of 4599 checklistsSep 1-7: 11% of 3958 checklistsSep 8-14: 12% of 3460 checklistsSep 15-21: 12% of 3435 checklistsSep 22-30: 13% of 4975 checklistsOct 1-7: 17% of 3611 checklistsOct 8-14: 19% of 3605 checklistsOct 15-21: 21% of 3474 checklistsOct 22-31: 22% of 4352 checklistsNov 1-7: 21% of 3119 checklistsNov 8-14: 18% of 2887 checklistsNov 15-21: 18% of 2568 checklistsNov 22-30: 17% of 3506 checklistsDec 1-7: 16% of 2453 checklistsDec 8-14: 16% of 2756 checklistsDec 15-21: 18% of 3760 checklistsDec 22-31: 17% of 3746 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 Nebraska 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 Nebraska

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Johnson CountyBest late October · 12 checklists that week, 429 in all79%
  2. Pawnee CountyBest late February · 10 checklists that week, 586 in all74%
  3. Richardson CountyBest mid November · 26 checklists that week, 788 in all68%
  4. Keya Paha CountyBest late November · 22 checklists that week, 455 in all68%
  5. Merrick CountyBest mid October · 15 checklists that week, 552 in all65%
  6. Wayne CountyBest the second week of October · 22 checklists that week, 1,960 in all63%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Platte River State ParkCass County, best early January · 27 checklists that week, 622 in all81%
  2. Chadron State ParkDawes County, best early October · 20 checklists that week, 425 in all73%
  3. Wagon Train LakeLancaster County, best late November · 20 checklists that week, 753 in all71%
  4. Branched Oak State Recreation AreaLancaster County, best the second week of February · 27 checklists that week, 1,199 in all66%
  5. Conestoga LakeLancaster County, best mid March · 30 checklists that week, 1,224 in all61%

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

Best time of day

In Nebraska, the American Crow is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (19% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%12 am: too few checklists (60) to judge1 am: too few checklists (70) to judge2 am: too few checklists (74) to judge3 am: too few checklists (97) to judge4 am: too few checklists (318) to judge5 am: too few checklists (1382) to judge6 am: 21% of 6945 checklists7 am: 19% of 19066 checklists8 am: 18% of 24661 checklists9 am: 17% of 23438 checklists10 am: 15% of 20424 checklists11 am: 15% of 16727 checklists12 pm: 13% of 14774 checklists1 pm: 13% of 14443 checklists2 pm: 13% of 14830 checklists3 pm: 11% of 14445 checklists4 pm: 9.8% of 13353 checklists5 pm: 9.3% of 10506 checklists6 pm: 9.2% of 9208 checklists7 pm: 8.2% of 6334 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (2406) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (531) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (201) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (82) 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
January17%17%17%16%
February16%15%16%20%
March21%19%17%14%
April13%12%13%14%
May14%13%13%12%
June12%9.7%9.8%9.6%
July9.2%8.1%8.4%8.1%
August8.3%9.1%8.4%10%
September11%12%12%13%
October17%19%21%22%
November21%18%18%17%
December16%16%18%17%

Neighboring states

  • Kansas: year-round, peaks mid October
  • South Dakota: year-round, peaks the second week of March
  • Iowa: year-round, peaks early March
  • Missouri: year-round, peaks mid October

Common questions

When do American Crows arrive in Nebraska?
American Crows are in Nebraska all year, but most are here in winter: numbers build from early October, peak in late October (21% of checklists), and fall back by mid March. In the quietest week (mid July) they are still on about 8.2% of checklists.
When do American Crows leave Nebraska?
American Crows never fully leave Nebraska: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by mid March, but some are still reported in every week, about 8.2% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a American Crow in Nebraska?
The American Crow is reported most often in late October, on about 21% of Nebraska checklists.
Where in Nebraska are American Crows seen most often?
By county, Johnson County, Pawnee County, and Richardson County have the highest peak reporting rates for the American Crow (counties with at least 200 checklists).