WhenToBird

Pluvialis dominica · Charadriidae

When Do American Golden-Plovers Arrive in North Dakota?

Adult American Golden-Plover
Photo: Rajan Rao, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

American Golden-Plovers are winter birds in North Dakota: they arrive in early August, peak in early October (1.5% of checklists), and most are gone by early November.

When to look

First arrivalsAug 1-7early August
Common byAug 1-7early August
PeakOct 1-7early October
Most gone byNov 1-7early November

Best: early October. First arrivals early August; most are gone by early November. Peak: on about 1.5% of North Dakota checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marnot usually seen
  4. Aprrare
  5. Maycommon
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Julrare
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novuncommon
  12. Decnot usually seen

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

0%0.5%1%1.5%2%Jan 1-7: 0% of 1694 checklistsJan 8-14: 0% of 1210 checklistsJan 15-21: 0% of 1263 checklistsJan 22-31: 0% of 1984 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0% of 1209 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0% of 1307 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0% of 1655 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0% of 1619 checklistsMar 1-7: 0% of 1653 checklistsMar 8-14: 0% of 1818 checklistsMar 15-21: 0% of 2103 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.1% of 3714 checklistsApr 1-7: 0% of 2955 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.1% of 3550 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.1% of 4104 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.2% of 5712 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.3% of 5328 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.6% of 5885 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.7% of 5344 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.7% of 7512 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.3% of 4329 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.1% of 4287 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.1% of 3798 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.1% of 4361 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.1% of 2939 checklistsJul 8-14: 0% of 2407 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.1% of 2254 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.1% of 2852 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.4% of 2119 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.4% of 2044 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.2% of 2124 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.1% of 3168 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.4% of 2449 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.6% of 2310 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.1% of 2092 checklistsSep 22-30: 1.7% of 2565 checklistsOct 1-7: 1.5% of 2071 checklistsOct 8-14: 1.3% of 1918 checklistsOct 15-21: 1.0% of 1907 checklistsOct 22-31: 1.0% of 2589 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.4% of 1858 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.1% of 1753 checklistsNov 15-21: 0% of 1483 checklistsNov 22-30: 0% of 1928 checklistsDec 1-7: 0% of 1337 checklistsDec 8-14: 0% of 1309 checklistsDec 15-21: 0% of 1642 checklistsDec 22-31: 0% of 1830 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 North Dakota 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 North Dakota

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Griggs CountyBest late June · 14 checklists that week, 372 in all17%
  2. Divide CountyBest mid October · 11 checklists that week, 573 in all14%
  3. Cavalier CountyBest early October · 11 checklists that week, 392 in all12%
  4. Nelson CountyBest early October · 12 checklists that week, 470 in all11%
  5. Renville CountyBest late July · 13 checklists that week, 415 in all7.1%
  6. Sheridan CountyBest mid October · 11 checklists that week, 620 in all6.9%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Kellys Slough ReservoirGrand Forks County, best late May · 38 checklists that week, 438 in all5.1%
  2. Grand Forks County Waterfowl Production AreaGrand Forks County, best late April · 26 checklists that week, 298 in all1.8%
  3. Hobart Lake National Wildlife RefugeBarnes County, best late April · 29 checklists that week, 191 in all1.6%

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

Best time of day

In North Dakota, the American Golden-Plover is most often listed on checklists started between 2 and 4 pm (0.5% of those checklists).

0%0.5%12 am: too few checklists (74) to judge1 am: too few checklists (45) to judge2 am: too few checklists (42) to judge3 am: too few checklists (68) to judge4 am: too few checklists (274) to judge5 am: too few checklists (1538) to judge6 am: 0.1% of 4242 checklists7 am: 0.2% of 9520 checklists8 am: 0.3% of 13065 checklists9 am: 0.4% of 13356 checklists10 am: 0.3% of 12128 checklists11 am: 0.2% of 10772 checklists12 pm: 0.4% of 10316 checklists1 pm: 0.4% of 9169 checklists2 pm: 0.5% of 8880 checklists3 pm: 0.5% of 8688 checklists4 pm: 0.4% of 8201 checklists5 pm: 0.4% of 6687 checklists6 pm: 0.2% of 5455 checklists7 pm: 0.2% of 3926 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (2024) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (602) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (181) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (89) 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%0%0%0%
March0%0%0%0.1%
April0%0.1%0.1%0.2%
May0.3%0.6%0.7%0.7%
June0.3%0.1%0.1%0.1%
July0.1%0%0.1%0.1%
August0.4%0.4%0.2%0.1%
September0.4%0.6%1.1%1.7%
October1.5%1.3%1.0%1.0%
November0.4%0.1%0%0%
December0%0%0%0%

Neighboring states

  • South Dakota: arrives early April, 16 weeks earlier than North Dakota
  • Minnesota: arrives early September, 4 weeks later than North Dakota
  • Nebraska: arrives late March, 17 weeks earlier than North Dakota
  • Iowa: arrives mid August, 2 weeks later than North Dakota

Common questions

When do American Golden-Plovers arrive in North Dakota?
American Golden-Plovers are winter birds in North Dakota: they arrive in early August, peak in early October (1.5% of checklists), and most are gone by early November.
When do American Golden-Plovers leave North Dakota?
Most American Golden-Plovers have left North Dakota by early November, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a American Golden-Plover in North Dakota?
The American Golden-Plover is reported most often in early October, on about 1.5% of North Dakota checklists.
Where in North Dakota are American Golden-Plovers seen most often?
By county, Griggs County, Divide County, and Cavalier County have the highest peak reporting rates for the American Golden-Plover (counties with at least 200 checklists).