WhenToBird

Haliaeetus leucocephalus · Accipitridae

When Do Bald Eagles Arrive in New Mexico?

Adult Bald Eagle
Photo: Marcel_Pepin, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Bald Eagles are winter birds in New Mexico: the first arrive in early November, they are common by the second week of November, peak in mid January (5.1% of checklists), and most are gone by early March.

When to look

First arrivalsNov 1-7early November
Common byNov 8-14the second week of November
PeakJan 15-21mid January
Most gone byMar 1-7early March

Best: mid January. First arrivals early November; most are gone by early March. Peak: on about 5.1% of New Mexico checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprrare
  5. Mayrare
  6. Junnot usually seen
  7. Julrare
  8. Augnot usually seen
  9. Seprare
  10. Octuncommon
  11. Novcommon
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%2%4%6%Jan 1-7: 4.8% of 11827 checklistsJan 8-14: 5.1% of 9370 checklistsJan 15-21: 5.1% of 9561 checklistsJan 22-31: 5.1% of 12707 checklistsFeb 1-7: 4.2% of 9365 checklistsFeb 8-14: 3.8% of 10141 checklistsFeb 15-21: 3.4% of 12431 checklistsFeb 22-28: 3.4% of 9159 checklistsMar 1-7: 2.5% of 9348 checklistsMar 8-14: 1.5% of 9704 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.9% of 9896 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.4% of 14679 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.5% of 11145 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.3% of 11939 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.3% of 12885 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.3% of 17935 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.3% of 15202 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.3% of 16604 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.3% of 12720 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.2% of 16699 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.2% of 9889 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.1% of 9322 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.1% of 8341 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.2% of 10562 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.2% of 9036 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.1% of 8461 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.3% of 8585 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.2% of 11800 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.2% of 8289 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.1% of 8882 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.2% of 9136 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.1% of 12662 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.3% of 9936 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.3% of 9581 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.4% of 9355 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.5% of 12402 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.3% of 9467 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.6% of 10279 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.5% of 8990 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.7% of 11986 checklistsNov 1-7: 1.4% of 8461 checklistsNov 8-14: 2.4% of 8801 checklistsNov 15-21: 2.6% of 8616 checklistsNov 22-30: 2.9% of 11088 checklistsDec 1-7: 3.6% of 8444 checklistsDec 8-14: 3.7% of 8575 checklistsDec 15-21: 4.0% of 10958 checklistsDec 22-31: 3.9% of 14523 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 New Mexico 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 New Mexico

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Colfax CountyBest the second week of December · 90 checklists that week, 8,053 in all33%
  2. San Juan CountyBest mid January · 56 checklists that week, 5,542 in all29%
  3. Union CountyBest early November · 21 checklists that week, 2,373 in all23%
  4. Guadalupe CountyBest the second week of January · 51 checklists that week, 2,614 in all22%
  5. De Baca CountyBest early February · 14 checklists that week, 2,203 in all22%
  6. Rio Arriba CountyBest the second week of January · 82 checklists that week, 8,526 in all18%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Santa Rosa Lake State ParkGuadalupe County, best the second week of January · 20 checklists that week, 356 in all64%
  2. Isleta LakesBernalillo County, best early February · 35 checklists that week, 693 in all54%
  3. Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge (northeast)Socorro County, best the second week of January · 38 checklists that week, 910 in all52%
  4. Maxwell National Wildlife RefugeColfax County, best early December · 22 checklists that week, 460 in all52%
  5. Elephant Butte Lake State Park (Three Sisters Point)Sierra County, best mid February · 20 checklists that week, 180 in all51%
  6. Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge (southeast 2)Socorro County, best early January · 39 checklists that week, 965 in all50%

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

Best time of day

In New Mexico, the Bald Eagle is most often listed on checklists started between 11 am and 1 pm (2.1% of those checklists).

0%1%2%3%12 am: too few checklists (186) to judge1 am: too few checklists (180) to judge2 am: too few checklists (172) to judge3 am: too few checklists (183) to judge4 am: too few checklists (527) to judge5 am: too few checklists (4013) to judge6 am: 0.8% of 29677 checklists7 am: 1.0% of 71785 checklists8 am: 1.3% of 79208 checklists9 am: 1.9% of 61605 checklists10 am: 2.1% of 49588 checklists11 am: 2.2% of 38079 checklists12 pm: 2.1% of 31089 checklists1 pm: 2.2% of 27524 checklists2 pm: 1.9% of 26644 checklists3 pm: 1.5% of 26849 checklists4 pm: 1.1% of 25156 checklists5 pm: 0.5% of 19061 checklists6 pm: 0.2% of 15112 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (9040) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (2738) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (736) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (384) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (208) 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
January4.8%5.1%5.1%5.1%
February4.2%3.8%3.4%3.4%
March2.5%1.5%0.9%0.4%
April0.5%0.3%0.3%0.3%
May0.3%0.3%0.3%0.2%
June0.2%0.1%0.1%0.2%
July0.2%0.1%0.3%0.2%
August0.2%0.1%0.2%0.1%
September0.3%0.3%0.4%0.5%
October0.3%0.6%0.5%0.7%
November1.4%2.4%2.6%2.9%
December3.6%3.7%4.0%3.9%

Neighboring states

  • Arizona: arrives mid August, 10 weeks earlier than New Mexico
  • Colorado: arrives late October, 1 week earlier than New Mexico
  • Utah: arrives mid July, 14 weeks earlier than New Mexico
  • Oklahoma: arrives the second week of August, 11 weeks earlier than New Mexico

Common questions

When do Bald Eagles arrive in New Mexico?
Bald Eagles are winter birds in New Mexico: the first arrive in early November, they are common by the second week of November, peak in mid January (5.1% of checklists), and most are gone by early March.
When do Bald Eagles leave New Mexico?
Most Bald Eagles have left New Mexico by early March, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until the second week of March.
When is the best time to see a Bald Eagle in New Mexico?
The Bald Eagle is reported most often in mid January, on about 5.1% of New Mexico checklists.
Where in New Mexico are Bald Eagles seen most often?
By county, Colfax County, San Juan County, and Union County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Bald Eagle (counties with at least 200 checklists).