WhenToBird

Haliaeetus leucocephalus · Accipitridae

When Do Bald Eagles Arrive in Virginia?

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

The Bald Eagle is in Virginia all year. It turns up on about 16% of checklists at its peak (mid December) and on 5.5% in its quietest week (late June).

When to look

PresentAll year
Peak weekDec 15-21mid December
Quietest weekJun 22-30late June

Best: mid December. Here all year. Peak: on about 16% of Virginia checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maycommon
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%5%10%15%20%Jan 1-7: 15% of 32817 checklistsJan 8-14: 15% of 25111 checklistsJan 15-21: 15% of 25510 checklistsJan 22-31: 15% of 34492 checklistsFeb 1-7: 16% of 24950 checklistsFeb 8-14: 12% of 28224 checklistsFeb 15-21: 12% of 43578 checklistsFeb 22-28: 14% of 26467 checklistsMar 1-7: 14% of 25851 checklistsMar 8-14: 14% of 25901 checklistsMar 15-21: 14% of 26747 checklistsMar 22-31: 14% of 40819 checklistsApr 1-7: 14% of 31351 checklistsApr 8-14: 14% of 33239 checklistsApr 15-21: 12% of 37284 checklistsApr 22-30: 10% of 54364 checklistsMay 1-7: 8.5% of 47698 checklistsMay 8-14: 8.2% of 46174 checklistsMay 15-21: 8.2% of 36444 checklistsMay 22-31: 7.2% of 43203 checklistsJun 1-7: 6.0% of 28503 checklistsJun 8-14: 5.7% of 25485 checklistsJun 15-21: 5.8% of 23728 checklistsJun 22-30: 5.2% of 28785 checklistsJul 1-7: 5.6% of 22294 checklistsJul 8-14: 6.2% of 20481 checklistsJul 15-21: 6.2% of 18914 checklistsJul 22-31: 6.3% of 26976 checklistsAug 1-7: 7.3% of 19555 checklistsAug 8-14: 7.5% of 18744 checklistsAug 15-21: 8.1% of 18721 checklistsAug 22-31: 9.5% of 28763 checklistsSep 1-7: 11% of 23594 checklistsSep 8-14: 11% of 22581 checklistsSep 15-21: 13% of 23036 checklistsSep 22-30: 12% of 29687 checklistsOct 1-7: 12% of 24321 checklistsOct 8-14: 13% of 23946 checklistsOct 15-21: 14% of 22191 checklistsOct 22-31: 14% of 30161 checklistsNov 1-7: 14% of 21431 checklistsNov 8-14: 17% of 22758 checklistsNov 15-21: 15% of 19988 checklistsNov 22-30: 16% of 27665 checklistsDec 1-7: 14% of 19324 checklistsDec 8-14: 16% of 20316 checklistsDec 15-21: 16% of 25675 checklistsDec 22-31: 17% of 38677 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 Virginia 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 Virginia

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Hopewell CountyBest mid March · 47 checklists that week, 3,116 in all78%
  2. Surry CountyBest the second week of August · 46 checklists that week, 2,669 in all69%
  3. Charles CityBest the second week of January · 24 checklists that week, 2,357 in all67%
  4. King William CountyBest the second week of December · 24 checklists that week, 2,070 in all66%
  5. Westmoreland CountyBest late September · 82 checklists that week, 4,451 in all59%
  6. Mathews CountyBest early September · 83 checklists that week, 3,594 in all48%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Pohick Bay Regional ParkFairfax County, best the second week of February · 24 checklists that week, 813 in all97%
  2. Hog Island Wildlife Management AreaSurry County, best early April · 23 checklists that week, 849 in all96%
  3. Pohick Bay Regional Park (north)Fairfax County, best early January · 35 checklists that week, 388 in all94%
  4. Dyke MarshFairfax County, best early April · 170 checklists that week, 5,950 in all92%
  5. Mason Neck State Park (east)Fairfax County, best late February · 23 checklists that week, 518 in all90%

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

Best time of day

In Virginia, the Bald Eagle is most often listed on checklists started between 10 am and 12 pm (13% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%12 am: too few checklists (485) to judge1 am: too few checklists (488) to judge2 am: too few checklists (423) to judge3 am: too few checklists (565) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1410) to judge5 am: too few checklists (10265) to judge6 am: 12% of 64788 checklists7 am: 13% of 169128 checklists8 am: 12% of 180748 checklists9 am: 13% of 153462 checklists10 am: 13% of 128966 checklists11 am: 13% of 104204 checklists12 pm: 12% of 91604 checklists1 pm: 12% of 85547 checklists2 pm: 12% of 82355 checklists3 pm: 11% of 82265 checklists4 pm: 8.8% of 76714 checklists5 pm: 7.5% of 56782 checklists6 pm: 5.5% of 40131 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (24290) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (7744) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2383) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1122) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (651) 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
January15%15%15%15%
February16%12%12%14%
March14%14%14%14%
April14%14%12%10%
May8.5%8.2%8.2%7.2%
June6.0%5.7%5.8%5.2%
July5.6%6.2%6.2%6.3%
August7.3%7.5%8.1%9.5%
September11%11%13%12%
October12%13%14%14%
November14%17%15%16%
December14%16%16%17%

Neighboring states

Common questions

When do Bald Eagles arrive in Virginia?
The Bald Eagle is in Virginia all year. It turns up on about 16% of checklists at its peak (mid December) and on 5.5% in its quietest week (late June).
When do Bald Eagles leave Virginia?
The Bald Eagle does not leave Virginia: it is reported all year, from 5.5% of checklists in late June to 16% in mid December.
When is the best time to see a Bald Eagle in Virginia?
The Bald Eagle is reported most often in mid December, on about 16% of Virginia checklists.
Where in Virginia are Bald Eagles seen most often?
By county, Hopewell County, Surry County, and Charles City have the highest peak reporting rates for the Bald Eagle (counties with at least 200 checklists).