WhenToBird

Picoides dorsalis · Picidae

When Do American Three-toed Woodpeckers Arrive in Utah?

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

American Three-toed Woodpeckers arrive in Utah in the second week of June, peak in mid July (1.4% of checklists), and most are gone by early September.

When to look

First arrivalsJun 8-14the second week of June
Common byJun 8-14the second week of June
PeakJul 15-21mid July
Most gone bySep 1-7early September

Best: mid July. First arrivals the second week of June; most are gone by early September. Peak: on about 1.4% of Utah checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marnot usually seen
  4. Aprnot usually seen
  5. Mayrare
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octuncommon
  11. Novrare
  12. Decnot usually seen

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

0%0.5%1%1.5%2%Jan 1-7: 0.1% of 10857 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.1% of 8333 checklistsJan 15-21: 0% of 8360 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.1% of 10516 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.1% of 7416 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.1% of 8082 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.1% of 9643 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.1% of 7960 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.1% of 7998 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.1% of 8581 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.1% of 8637 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.1% of 13006 checklistsApr 1-7: 0% of 10562 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.1% of 11694 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.1% of 11382 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.1% of 16626 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.1% of 13523 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.1% of 14714 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.1% of 13711 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.1% of 16546 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.4% of 10284 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.5% of 9530 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.8% of 8854 checklistsJun 22-30: 1.2% of 10566 checklistsJul 1-7: 1.2% of 7987 checklistsJul 8-14: 1.4% of 7471 checklistsJul 15-21: 1.5% of 7240 checklistsJul 22-31: 1.3% of 9329 checklistsAug 1-7: 1.2% of 6521 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.9% of 6423 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.9% of 6208 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.7% of 9089 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.5% of 7081 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.3% of 7306 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.4% of 7208 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.2% of 8876 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.2% of 7265 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.2% of 7226 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.2% of 7007 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.1% of 8443 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.1% of 6711 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.1% of 6290 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.1% of 6169 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.1% of 8228 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.1% of 6011 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.1% of 6044 checklistsDec 15-21: 0% of 6721 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.1% of 9982 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 Utah 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 Utah

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Duchesne CountyBest early July · 136 checklists that week, 2,692 in all16%
  2. Beaver CountyBest early July · 94 checklists that week, 6,956 in all14%
  3. Summit CountyBest mid June · 413 checklists that week, 13,829 in all6.5%
  4. Uintah CountyBest the second week of July · 143 checklists that week, 9,143 in all4.7%
  5. Piute CountyBest early October · 22 checklists that week, 1,035 in all3.9%
  6. Rich CountyBest the second week of June · 94 checklists that week, 1,563 in all3.4%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Emerald LakeDuchesne County, best late June · 28 checklists that week, 373 in all32%
  2. Lily LakesSummit County, best mid July · 24 checklists that week, 149 in all29%
  3. Lake SolitudeSalt Lake County, best mid July · 26 checklists that week, 171 in all27%
  4. Trial LakeSummit County, best late July · 24 checklists that week, 138 in all27%
  5. Moosehorn LakeSummit County, best late July · 20 checklists that week, 139 in all16%
  6. Silver Lake (Giles Flat)Salt Lake County, best mid September · 30 checklists that week, 278 in all15%

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

Best time of day

In Utah, the American Three-toed Woodpecker is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (0.5% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%12 am: too few checklists (242) to judge1 am: too few checklists (178) to judge2 am: too few checklists (169) to judge3 am: too few checklists (162) to judge4 am: too few checklists (284) to judge5 am: too few checklists (1984) to judge6 am: 0.6% of 11714 checklists7 am: 0.4% of 33209 checklists8 am: 0.3% of 46944 checklists9 am: 0.3% of 46290 checklists10 am: 0.3% of 43144 checklists11 am: 0.3% of 36893 checklists12 pm: 0.2% of 32758 checklists1 pm: 0.2% of 30142 checklists2 pm: 0.2% of 29414 checklists3 pm: 0.2% of 29491 checklists4 pm: 0.2% of 29154 checklists5 pm: 0.2% of 22256 checklists6 pm: 0.2% of 17383 checklists7 pm: 0.2% of 13099 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (6647) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1753) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (599) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (307) 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%0.1%0%0.1%
February0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
March0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
April0%0.1%0.1%0.1%
May0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
June0.4%0.5%0.8%1.2%
July1.2%1.4%1.5%1.3%
August1.2%0.9%0.9%0.7%
September0.5%0.3%0.4%0.2%
October0.2%0.2%0.2%0.1%
November0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
December0.1%0.1%0%0.1%

Neighboring states

  • Colorado: arrives early June, 1 week earlier than Utah
  • Montana: arrives mid April, 7 weeks earlier than Utah
  • Alaska: year-round, peaks mid March

Common questions

When do American Three-toed Woodpeckers arrive in Utah?
American Three-toed Woodpeckers arrive in Utah in the second week of June, peak in mid July (1.4% of checklists), and most are gone by early September.
When do American Three-toed Woodpeckers leave Utah?
Most American Three-toed Woodpeckers have left Utah by early September, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a American Three-toed Woodpecker in Utah?
The American Three-toed Woodpecker is reported most often in mid July, on about 1.4% of Utah checklists.
Where in Utah are American Three-toed Woodpeckers seen most often?
By county, Duchesne County, Beaver County, and Summit County have the highest peak reporting rates for the American Three-toed Woodpecker (counties with at least 200 checklists).