WhenToBird

Picoides dorsalis · Picidae

When Do American Three-toed Woodpeckers Arrive in Montana?

Adult female American Three-toed Woodpecker
Photo: Kevin Krebs, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

American Three-toed Woodpeckers arrive in Montana in mid April, peak in early July (1.1% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of December.

When to look

First arrivalsApr 15-21mid April
Common byApr 15-21mid April
PeakJul 1-7early July
Most gone byDec 8-14the second week of December

Best: early July. First arrivals mid April; most are gone by the second week of December. Peak: on about 1.1% of Montana checklists.

  1. Januncommon
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Maruncommon
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octuncommon
  11. Novuncommon
  12. Decuncommon

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

0%0.5%1%1.5%Jan 1-7: 0.2% of 7987 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.3% of 5561 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.2% of 5613 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.3% of 7881 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.1% of 5018 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.3% of 5598 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.2% of 7247 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.1% of 5531 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.3% of 6110 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.2% of 6623 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.2% of 7687 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.2% of 11095 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.2% of 7774 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.2% of 8785 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.2% of 9684 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.2% of 13805 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.3% of 11847 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.3% of 13547 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.3% of 13019 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.4% of 20456 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.5% of 12993 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.5% of 11594 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.8% of 11159 checklistsJun 22-30: 1.1% of 13786 checklistsJul 1-7: 1.0% of 9584 checklistsJul 8-14: 1.1% of 9078 checklistsJul 15-21: 1.1% of 7905 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.9% of 10906 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.9% of 7335 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.7% of 6868 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.5% of 6866 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.4% of 10076 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.5% of 7670 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.4% of 7490 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.5% of 6804 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.4% of 8016 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.5% of 5996 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.2% of 6156 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.3% of 5742 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.2% of 7790 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.3% of 5353 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.2% of 5475 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.5% of 4603 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.4% of 6067 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.3% of 4362 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.3% of 4467 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.1% of 5328 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.2% of 6672 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 Montana 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 Montana

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Judith Basin CountyBest early August · 11 checklists that week, 650 in all6.3%
  2. Glacier CountyBest late June · 801 checklists that week, 9,238 in all4.7%
  3. Broadwater CountyBest early April · 47 checklists that week, 2,470 in all4.1%
  4. Granite CountyBest the second week of August · 30 checklists that week, 1,737 in all3.9%
  5. Sweet Grass CountyBest late July · 49 checklists that week, 1,532 in all3.7%
  6. Powell CountyBest late June · 198 checklists that week, 5,305 in all3.0%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Saint Mary FallsGlacier County, best late June · 22 checklists that week, 152 in all43%
  2. Sunrift GorgeGlacier County, best late June · 20 checklists that week, 121 in all15%
  3. Swamp GulchLewis and Clark County, best early June · 28 checklists that week, 160 in all12%
  4. Glacier National Park (east)Glacier County, best mid June · 20 checklists that week, 322 in all12%
  5. Swiftcurrent FallsGlacier County, best the second week of July · 23 checklists that week, 177 in all11%

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

Best time of day

In Montana, the American Three-toed Woodpecker is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (0.6% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%12 am: too few checklists (183) to judge1 am: too few checklists (169) to judge2 am: too few checklists (163) to judge3 am: too few checklists (212) to judge4 am: too few checklists (503) to judge5 am: too few checklists (4022) to judge6 am: 0.6% of 12719 checklists7 am: 0.5% of 31202 checklists8 am: 0.5% of 47646 checklists9 am: 0.5% of 44624 checklists10 am: 0.5% of 40704 checklists11 am: 0.4% of 33825 checklists12 pm: 0.5% of 29407 checklists1 pm: 0.4% of 27959 checklists2 pm: 0.4% of 26928 checklists3 pm: 0.3% of 25313 checklists4 pm: 0.2% of 22151 checklists5 pm: 0.3% of 16884 checklists6 pm: 0.2% of 13780 checklists7 pm: 0.3% of 9926 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (5765) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2099) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (595) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (230) 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
January0.2%0.3%0.2%0.3%
February0.1%0.3%0.2%0.1%
March0.3%0.2%0.2%0.2%
April0.2%0.2%0.2%0.2%
May0.3%0.3%0.3%0.4%
June0.5%0.5%0.8%1.1%
July1.0%1.1%1.1%0.9%
August0.9%0.7%0.5%0.4%
September0.5%0.4%0.5%0.4%
October0.5%0.2%0.3%0.2%
November0.3%0.2%0.5%0.4%
December0.3%0.3%0.1%0.2%

Neighboring states

  • Utah: arrives the second week of June, 7 weeks later than Montana
  • Colorado: arrives early June, 6 weeks later than Montana
  • Alaska: year-round, peaks mid March

Common questions

When do American Three-toed Woodpeckers arrive in Montana?
American Three-toed Woodpeckers arrive in Montana in mid April, peak in early July (1.1% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of December.
When do American Three-toed Woodpeckers leave Montana?
Most American Three-toed Woodpeckers have left Montana by the second week of December, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a American Three-toed Woodpecker in Montana?
The American Three-toed Woodpecker is reported most often in early July, on about 1.1% of Montana checklists.
Where in Montana are American Three-toed Woodpeckers seen most often?
By county, Judith Basin County, Glacier County, and Broadwater County have the highest peak reporting rates for the American Three-toed Woodpecker (counties with at least 200 checklists).