WhenToBird

Larus smithsonianus · Laridae

When Do American Herring Gulls Arrive in Maine?

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

The American Herring Gull is in Maine all year. It turns up on about 41% of checklists at its peak (mid August) and on 24% in its quietest week (mid June).

When to look

PresentAll year
Peak weekAug 15-21mid August
Quietest weekJun 15-21mid June

Best: mid August. Here all year. Peak: on about 41% of Maine checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maycommon
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%20%40%60%Jan 1-7: 38% of 15499 checklistsJan 8-14: 36% of 11141 checklistsJan 15-21: 35% of 10729 checklistsJan 22-31: 36% of 15084 checklistsFeb 1-7: 34% of 9403 checklistsFeb 8-14: 32% of 11268 checklistsFeb 15-21: 29% of 14061 checklistsFeb 22-28: 34% of 9977 checklistsMar 1-7: 34% of 9649 checklistsMar 8-14: 31% of 11781 checklistsMar 15-21: 32% of 11613 checklistsMar 22-31: 29% of 17798 checklistsApr 1-7: 28% of 14638 checklistsApr 8-14: 28% of 16511 checklistsApr 15-21: 28% of 17164 checklistsApr 22-30: 27% of 22602 checklistsMay 1-7: 28% of 22556 checklistsMay 8-14: 25% of 27842 checklistsMay 15-21: 26% of 27748 checklistsMay 22-31: 27% of 38715 checklistsJun 1-7: 26% of 26916 checklistsJun 8-14: 23% of 23737 checklistsJun 15-21: 25% of 22733 checklistsJun 22-30: 23% of 28248 checklistsJul 1-7: 27% of 20290 checklistsJul 8-14: 31% of 18534 checklistsJul 15-21: 32% of 17319 checklistsJul 22-31: 34% of 22815 checklistsAug 1-7: 37% of 15004 checklistsAug 8-14: 42% of 14603 checklistsAug 15-21: 42% of 14972 checklistsAug 22-31: 40% of 19813 checklistsSep 1-7: 40% of 14567 checklistsSep 8-14: 40% of 14520 checklistsSep 15-21: 40% of 14339 checklistsSep 22-30: 37% of 16879 checklistsOct 1-7: 34% of 12959 checklistsOct 8-14: 34% of 13168 checklistsOct 15-21: 33% of 11184 checklistsOct 22-31: 35% of 13717 checklistsNov 1-7: 36% of 9823 checklistsNov 8-14: 36% of 9007 checklistsNov 15-21: 37% of 8528 checklistsNov 22-30: 39% of 10228 checklistsDec 1-7: 38% of 7505 checklistsDec 8-14: 36% of 7982 checklistsDec 15-21: 36% of 10455 checklistsDec 22-31: 36% of 14285 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 Maine 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 Maine

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Knox CountyBest mid July · 792 checklists that week, 34,453 in all58%
  2. York CountyBest early September · 2179 checklists that week, 101,844 in all57%
  3. Sagadahoc CountyBest mid August · 465 checklists that week, 21,736 in all56%
  4. Washington CountyBest mid October · 289 checklists that week, 35,967 in all53%
  5. Lincoln CountyBest mid September · 1659 checklists that week, 59,429 in all52%
  6. Hancock CountyBest mid August · 2564 checklists that week, 118,358 in all51%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Back CreekYork County, best late October · 29 checklists that week, 620 in all100%
  2. Lighthouse CoveLincoln County, best the second week of September · 35 checklists that week, 1,298 in all100%
  3. Hermit IslandSagadahoc County, best the second week of September · 33 checklists that week, 387 in all100%
  4. Mill CoveWaldo County, best early August · 24 checklists that week, 399 in all100%
  5. Owls Head HarborKnox County, best late January · 41 checklists that week, 216 in all100%

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

Best time of day

In Maine, the American Herring Gull is most often listed on checklists started between 1 and 3 pm (37% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%40%12 am: too few checklists (510) to judge1 am: too few checklists (517) to judge2 am: too few checklists (581) to judge3 am: too few checklists (3242) to judge4 am: too few checklists (7221) to judge5 am: 26% of 19895 checklists6 am: 32% of 54578 checklists7 am: 29% of 92775 checklists8 am: 30% of 86962 checklists9 am: 32% of 78989 checklists10 am: 34% of 70954 checklists11 am: 35% of 59331 checklists12 pm: 35% of 50943 checklists1 pm: 38% of 49775 checklists2 pm: 37% of 49001 checklists3 pm: 36% of 43252 checklists4 pm: 34% of 33413 checklists5 pm: 32% of 25547 checklists6 pm: 28% of 18309 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (14287) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (5336) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2253) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1518) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (720) 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
January38%36%35%36%
February34%32%29%34%
March34%31%32%29%
April28%28%28%27%
May28%25%26%27%
June26%23%25%23%
July27%31%32%34%
August37%42%42%40%
September40%40%40%37%
October34%34%33%35%
November36%36%37%39%
December38%36%36%36%

Neighboring states

Common questions

When do American Herring Gulls arrive in Maine?
The American Herring Gull is in Maine all year. It turns up on about 41% of checklists at its peak (mid August) and on 24% in its quietest week (mid June).
When do American Herring Gulls leave Maine?
The American Herring Gull does not leave Maine: it is reported all year, from 24% of checklists in mid June to 41% in mid August.
When is the best time to see a American Herring Gull in Maine?
The American Herring Gull is reported most often in mid August, on about 41% of Maine checklists.
Where in Maine are American Herring Gulls seen most often?
By county, Knox County, York County, and Sagadahoc County have the highest peak reporting rates for the American Herring Gull (counties with at least 200 checklists).