WhenToBird

Pelecanus erythrorhynchos · Pelecanidae

When Do American White Pelicans Arrive in Wyoming?

Adult American White Pelican
Photo: Craig K, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

American White Pelicans reach Wyoming in mid March, are common by the second week of April, peak in late April (9.6% of checklists), and most are gone by early October.

When to look

First arrivalsMar 15-21mid March
Common byApr 8-14the second week of April
PeakApr 22-30late April
Most gone byOct 1-7early October

Best: late April. First arrivals mid March; most are gone by early October. Peak: on about 9.6% of Wyoming checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Maruncommon
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novrare
  12. Decnot usually seen

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

0%5%10%15%Jan 1-7: 0.1% of 2543 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.1% of 2114 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.1% of 1984 checklistsJan 22-31: 0% of 2605 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0% of 1940 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.1% of 1954 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0% of 2575 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0% of 1932 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.1% of 2486 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.1% of 2535 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.5% of 2726 checklistsMar 22-31: 1.9% of 4349 checklistsApr 1-7: 3.8% of 3300 checklistsApr 8-14: 5.9% of 3500 checklistsApr 15-21: 8.5% of 3701 checklistsApr 22-30: 10% of 5887 checklistsMay 1-7: 9.4% of 5341 checklistsMay 8-14: 8.7% of 6910 checklistsMay 15-21: 7.5% of 6884 checklistsMay 22-31: 7.6% of 10652 checklistsJun 1-7: 7.2% of 6807 checklistsJun 8-14: 7.0% of 6714 checklistsJun 15-21: 8.8% of 6708 checklistsJun 22-30: 8.6% of 8160 checklistsJul 1-7: 7.9% of 5755 checklistsJul 8-14: 9.4% of 5379 checklistsJul 15-21: 9.3% of 5299 checklistsJul 22-31: 9.4% of 6830 checklistsAug 1-7: 9.2% of 4581 checklistsAug 8-14: 8.1% of 4625 checklistsAug 15-21: 8.9% of 4466 checklistsAug 22-31: 7.7% of 6562 checklistsSep 1-7: 8.4% of 4543 checklistsSep 8-14: 7.8% of 4652 checklistsSep 15-21: 6.8% of 4186 checklistsSep 22-30: 5.3% of 5301 checklistsOct 1-7: 3.8% of 3248 checklistsOct 8-14: 3.1% of 3010 checklistsOct 15-21: 1.7% of 2624 checklistsOct 22-31: 1.2% of 3170 checklistsNov 1-7: 1.3% of 2110 checklistsNov 8-14: 1.1% of 2153 checklistsNov 15-21: 1.1% of 1971 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.6% of 2136 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.1% of 1646 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.1% of 1609 checklistsDec 15-21: 0% of 1954 checklistsDec 22-31: 0% of 2392 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 Wyoming 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.

Embed this map on your site

Where in Wyoming

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Natrona CountyBest the second week of August · 135 checklists that week, 5,810 in all36%
  2. Platte CountyBest the second week of September · 19 checklists that week, 1,645 in all32%
  3. Goshen CountyBest the second week of September · 27 checklists that week, 1,920 in all25%
  4. Lincoln CountyBest mid April · 31 checklists that week, 3,169 in all23%
  5. Carbon CountyBest the second week of November · 42 checklists that week, 6,429 in all23%
  6. Uinta CountyBest the second week of June · 73 checklists that week, 1,881 in all21%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. State Lands 1111116182Natrona County, best early May · 25 checklists that week, 483 in all95%
  2. Grand Teton National ParkTeton County, best early May · 35 checklists that week, 988 in all89%
  3. Alkali LakePark County, best early August · 21 checklists that week, 722 in all89%
  4. Saratoga LakeCarbon County, best late June · 31 checklists that week, 626 in all85%
  5. Yellowstone National Park (Pelican Valley)Park County, best the second week of July · 29 checklists that week, 400 in all79%
  6. Grand Teton National Park (Spring Creek)Teton County, best the second week of September · 41 checklists that week, 724 in all77%

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

Best time of day

In Wyoming, the American White Pelican is most often listed on checklists started between 9 and 11 am (6.6% of those checklists).

0%2%4%6%8%12 am: too few checklists (59) to judge1 am: too few checklists (76) to judge2 am: too few checklists (86) to judge3 am: too few checklists (79) to judge4 am: too few checklists (326) to judge5 am: too few checklists (2271) to judge6 am: 6.1% of 8808 checklists7 am: 5.0% of 18458 checklists8 am: 5.6% of 22143 checklists9 am: 6.4% of 21499 checklists10 am: 6.9% of 19425 checklists11 am: 6.2% of 16017 checklists12 pm: 5.5% of 13868 checklists1 pm: 5.9% of 12984 checklists2 pm: 6.0% of 12605 checklists3 pm: 5.7% of 11821 checklists4 pm: 5.6% of 10571 checklists5 pm: 6.4% of 8746 checklists6 pm: 5.7% of 6707 checklists7 pm: 6.5% of 4890 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (2323) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (554) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (134) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (59) 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%0.1%0%
February0%0.1%0%0%
March0.1%0.1%0.5%1.9%
April3.8%5.9%8.5%10%
May9.4%8.7%7.5%7.6%
June7.2%7.0%8.8%8.6%
July7.9%9.4%9.3%9.4%
August9.2%8.1%8.9%7.7%
September8.4%7.8%6.8%5.3%
October3.8%3.1%1.7%1.2%
November1.3%1.1%1.1%0.6%
December0.1%0.1%0%0%

Neighboring states

  • Colorado: arrives early March, 2 weeks earlier than Wyoming
  • Utah: arrives mid January, 8 weeks earlier than Wyoming
  • Montana: arrives mid March, in the same week than Wyoming
  • Idaho: arrives the second week of March, 1 week earlier than Wyoming

Common questions

When do American White Pelicans arrive in Wyoming?
American White Pelicans reach Wyoming in mid March, are common by the second week of April, peak in late April (9.6% of checklists), and most are gone by early October.
When do American White Pelicans leave Wyoming?
Most American White Pelicans have left Wyoming by early October, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until the second week of November.
When is the best time to see a American White Pelican in Wyoming?
The American White Pelican is reported most often in late April, on about 9.6% of Wyoming checklists.
Where in Wyoming are American White Pelicans seen most often?
By county, Natrona County, Platte County, and Goshen County have the highest peak reporting rates for the American White Pelican (counties with at least 200 checklists).