WhenToBird

Anthus rubescens · Motacillidae

When Do American Pipits Arrive in Nebraska?

Adult American Pipit
Photo: Peter Chen 2.0, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

American Pipits are winter birds in Nebraska: they arrive in the second week of September, peak in mid October (4.5% of checklists), and most are gone by mid November.

When to look

First arrivalsSep 8-14the second week of September
Common bySep 8-14the second week of September
PeakOct 15-21mid October
Most gone byNov 15-21mid November

Best: mid October. First arrivals the second week of September; most are gone by mid November. Peak: on about 4.5% of Nebraska checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febrare
  3. Maruncommon
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Junnot usually seen
  7. Julnot usually seen
  8. Augnot usually seen
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novcommon
  12. Decnot usually seen

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

0%2%4%6%Jan 1-7: 0.1% of 4210 checklistsJan 8-14: 0% of 2891 checklistsJan 15-21: 0% of 2685 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.1% of 3834 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0% of 2803 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.1% of 3134 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.1% of 4508 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.1% of 3238 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.4% of 3862 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.4% of 4894 checklistsMar 15-21: 1.0% of 5862 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.4% of 8598 checklistsApr 1-7: 1.1% of 5530 checklistsApr 8-14: 1.2% of 5528 checklistsApr 15-21: 1.6% of 6091 checklistsApr 22-30: 1.3% of 8661 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.8% of 9842 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.4% of 10044 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.1% of 8863 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.1% of 10207 checklistsJun 1-7: 0% of 4922 checklistsJun 8-14: 0% of 4054 checklistsJun 15-21: 0% of 3680 checklistsJun 22-30: 0% of 4349 checklistsJul 1-7: 0% of 3277 checklistsJul 8-14: 0% of 2803 checklistsJul 15-21: 0% of 2842 checklistsJul 22-31: 0% of 3920 checklistsAug 1-7: 0% of 2981 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.1% of 2819 checklistsAug 15-21: 0% of 3179 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.1% of 4599 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.2% of 3958 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.3% of 3460 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.0% of 3435 checklistsSep 22-30: 2.6% of 4975 checklistsOct 1-7: 2.9% of 3611 checklistsOct 8-14: 4.2% of 3605 checklistsOct 15-21: 4.1% of 3474 checklistsOct 22-31: 5.2% of 4352 checklistsNov 1-7: 2.5% of 3119 checklistsNov 8-14: 1.4% of 2887 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.3% of 2568 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.1% of 3506 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.1% of 2453 checklistsDec 8-14: 0% of 2756 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.1% of 3760 checklistsDec 22-31: 0% 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. Loup CountyBest mid October · 14 checklists that week, 683 in all26%
  2. Hitchcock CountyBest early October · 11 checklists that week, 441 in all21%
  3. Garden CountyBest late October · 15 checklists that week, 1,392 in all20%
  4. Sherman CountyBest mid October · 18 checklists that week, 399 in all20%
  5. Pierce CountyBest the second week of October · 15 checklists that week, 516 in all19%
  6. Custer CountyBest the second week of October · 10 checklists that week, 848 in all16%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Oliver Reservoir State Recreation AreaKimball County, best late September · 39 checklists that week, 597 in all16%
  2. Pawnee LakeLancaster County, best early October · 23 checklists that week, 1,270 in all14%
  3. Lake NorthPlatte County, best early October · 20 checklists that week, 597 in all14%
  4. Burchard Lake Wildlife Management AreaPawnee County, best late March · 25 checklists that week, 195 in all13%
  5. Branched Oak State Recreation AreaLancaster County, best mid October · 22 checklists that week, 1,199 in all13%
  6. Lake MinatareScotts Bluff County, best late September · 29 checklists that week, 383 in all13%

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

Best time of day

In Nebraska, the American Pipit is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (1.1% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%1.5%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: 1.4% of 6945 checklists7 am: 1.1% of 19066 checklists8 am: 1.1% of 24661 checklists9 am: 0.8% of 23438 checklists10 am: 0.9% of 20424 checklists11 am: 0.7% of 16727 checklists12 pm: 0.7% of 14774 checklists1 pm: 0.6% of 14443 checklists2 pm: 0.7% of 14830 checklists3 pm: 0.4% of 14445 checklists4 pm: 0.4% of 13353 checklists5 pm: 0.4% of 10506 checklists6 pm: 0.4% of 9208 checklists7 pm: 0.1% 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
January0.1%0%0%0.1%
February0%0.1%0.1%0.1%
March0.4%0.4%1.0%0.4%
April1.1%1.2%1.6%1.3%
May0.8%0.4%0.1%0.1%
June0%0%0%0%
July0%0%0%0%
August0%0.1%0%0.1%
September0.2%0.3%1.0%2.6%
October2.9%4.2%4.1%5.2%
November2.5%1.4%0.3%0.1%
December0.1%0%0.1%0%

Neighboring states

  • Kansas: arrives early October, 3 weeks later than Nebraska
  • South Dakota: arrives mid September, 1 week later than Nebraska
  • Iowa: arrives mid September, 1 week later than Nebraska
  • Missouri: arrives late September, 2 weeks later than Nebraska

Common questions

When do American Pipits arrive in Nebraska?
American Pipits are winter birds in Nebraska: they arrive in the second week of September, peak in mid October (4.5% of checklists), and most are gone by mid November.
When do American Pipits leave Nebraska?
Most American Pipits have left Nebraska by mid November, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a American Pipit in Nebraska?
The American Pipit is reported most often in mid October, on about 4.5% of Nebraska checklists.
Where in Nebraska are American Pipits seen most often?
By county, Loup County, Hitchcock County, and Garden County have the highest peak reporting rates for the American Pipit (counties with at least 200 checklists).