WhenToBird

Larus smithsonianus · Laridae

When Do American Herring Gulls Arrive in Alabama?

Adult American Herring Gull
Photo: Priya Sandhu, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

American Herring Gulls are winter birds in Alabama: the first arrive in mid September, they are common by the second week of October, peak in mid January (5.9% of checklists), and most are gone by late April.

When to look

First arrivalsSep 15-21mid September
Common byOct 8-14the second week of October
PeakJan 15-21mid January
Most gone byApr 22-30late April

Best: mid January. First arrivals mid September; most are gone by late April. Peak: on about 5.9% of Alabama checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Junrare
  7. Julrare
  8. Augrare
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octuncommon
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%2%4%6%8%Jan 1-7: 5.5% of 8642 checklistsJan 8-14: 5.6% of 6607 checklistsJan 15-21: 5.5% of 6680 checklistsJan 22-31: 6.3% of 9008 checklistsFeb 1-7: 5.3% of 6642 checklistsFeb 8-14: 4.8% of 7568 checklistsFeb 15-21: 3.2% of 9929 checklistsFeb 22-28: 3.9% of 6490 checklistsMar 1-7: 4.1% of 6458 checklistsMar 8-14: 3.9% of 6570 checklistsMar 15-21: 4.2% of 6773 checklistsMar 22-31: 3.9% of 10830 checklistsApr 1-7: 4.3% of 8995 checklistsApr 8-14: 4.3% of 10390 checklistsApr 15-21: 5.1% of 12700 checklistsApr 22-30: 2.9% of 14225 checklistsMay 1-7: 1.7% of 9140 checklistsMay 8-14: 1.0% of 8111 checklistsMay 15-21: 1.1% of 6353 checklistsMay 22-31: 1.2% of 8318 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.6% of 5231 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.5% of 4757 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.5% of 4646 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.3% of 5740 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.4% of 4694 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.4% of 4178 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.3% of 4109 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.5% of 6000 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.4% of 4666 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.8% of 4468 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.6% of 4474 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.8% of 6494 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.8% of 5434 checklistsSep 8-14: 1.1% of 5216 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.0% of 5162 checklistsSep 22-30: 1.2% of 7474 checklistsOct 1-7: 1.8% of 6916 checklistsOct 8-14: 2.3% of 7332 checklistsOct 15-21: 2.2% of 6038 checklistsOct 22-31: 2.4% of 7071 checklistsNov 1-7: 2.4% of 5207 checklistsNov 8-14: 3.6% of 4883 checklistsNov 15-21: 4.9% of 5122 checklistsNov 22-30: 4.5% of 7130 checklistsDec 1-7: 4.7% of 4897 checklistsDec 8-14: 5.1% of 4738 checklistsDec 15-21: 5.2% of 5321 checklistsDec 22-31: 6.3% of 9158 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 Alabama 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 Alabama

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Lawrence CountyBest mid December · 13 checklists that week, 1,969 in all49%
  2. Marshall CountyBest mid January · 184 checklists that week, 5,647 in all33%
  3. Mobile CountyBest mid December · 404 checklists that week, 34,270 in all21%
  4. Colbert CountyBest mid December · 60 checklists that week, 4,794 in all20%
  5. Baldwin CountyBest mid December · 870 checklists that week, 54,971 in all14%
  6. Henry CountyBest the second week of November · 14 checklists that week, 338 in all12%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Guntersville Reservoir Retained Land (Big Spring Creek)Marshall County, best late January · 26 checklists that week, 257 in all82%
  2. Wheeler Reservoir Retained LandLawrence County, best late December · 40 checklists that week, 841 in all71%
  3. Florida PointBaldwin County, best mid March · 44 checklists that week, 316 in all66%
  4. Pelican Point (Fort Gaines)Mobile County, best late March · 33 checklists that week, 408 in all60%

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

Best time of day

In Alabama, the American Herring Gull is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (3.7% of those checklists).

0%1%2%3%4%12 am: too few checklists (109) to judge1 am: too few checklists (111) to judge2 am: too few checklists (112) to judge3 am: too few checklists (143) to judge4 am: too few checklists (303) to judge5 am: too few checklists (4125) to judge6 am: 3.7% of 26677 checklists7 am: 3.7% of 42599 checklists8 am: 2.9% of 39919 checklists9 am: 2.9% of 34699 checklists10 am: 3.3% of 28551 checklists11 am: 3.2% of 23505 checklists12 pm: 3.1% of 20345 checklists1 pm: 3.6% of 18964 checklists2 pm: 3.6% of 20110 checklists3 pm: 3.2% of 20685 checklists4 pm: 2.2% of 19041 checklists5 pm: 1.7% of 13807 checklists6 pm: 1.3% of 8507 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (3367) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (637) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (295) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (233) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (141) 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
January5.5%5.6%5.5%6.3%
February5.3%4.8%3.2%3.9%
March4.1%3.9%4.2%3.9%
April4.3%4.3%5.1%2.9%
May1.7%1.0%1.1%1.2%
June0.6%0.5%0.5%0.3%
July0.4%0.4%0.3%0.5%
August0.4%0.8%0.6%0.8%
September0.8%1.1%1.0%1.2%
October1.8%2.3%2.2%2.4%
November2.4%3.6%4.9%4.5%
December4.7%5.1%5.2%6.3%

Neighboring states

  • Mississippi: arrives early October, 2 weeks later than Alabama
  • Georgia: arrives mid July, 8 weeks earlier than Alabama
  • Tennessee: arrives mid October, 4 weeks later than Alabama
  • Louisiana: arrives early October, 2 weeks later than Alabama

Common questions

When do American Herring Gulls arrive in Alabama?
American Herring Gulls are winter birds in Alabama: the first arrive in mid September, they are common by the second week of October, peak in mid January (5.9% of checklists), and most are gone by late April.
When do American Herring Gulls leave Alabama?
Most American Herring Gulls have left Alabama by late April, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until mid May.
When is the best time to see a American Herring Gull in Alabama?
The American Herring Gull is reported most often in mid January, on about 5.9% of Alabama checklists.
Where in Alabama are American Herring Gulls seen most often?
By county, Lawrence County, Marshall County, and Mobile County have the highest peak reporting rates for the American Herring Gull (counties with at least 200 checklists).