WhenToBird

Haliaeetus leucocephalus · Accipitridae

When Do Bald Eagles Arrive in West Virginia?

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

Bald Eagles are in West Virginia all year, but most are here in winter: numbers build from the second week of September, peak in the second week of December (9.4% of checklists), and fall back by late February. In the quietest week (early July) they are still on about 2.6% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildSep 8-14the second week of September
PeakDec 8-14the second week of December
Fall back byFeb 22-28late February
FewestJul 1-7early July

Best: the second week of December. Here all year; numbers build from the second week of September and fall back by late February. Peak: on about 9.4% of West Virginia checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Juluncommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%5%10%15%Jan 1-7: 7.5% of 4227 checklistsJan 8-14: 7.5% of 3147 checklistsJan 15-21: 7.4% of 3410 checklistsJan 22-31: 8.0% of 4248 checklistsFeb 1-7: 7.8% of 3150 checklistsFeb 8-14: 7.1% of 3653 checklistsFeb 15-21: 6.5% of 5140 checklistsFeb 22-28: 6.3% of 3846 checklistsMar 1-7: 5.6% of 3901 checklistsMar 8-14: 5.7% of 3820 checklistsMar 15-21: 5.7% of 3781 checklistsMar 22-31: 4.8% of 5705 checklistsApr 1-7: 5.8% of 4529 checklistsApr 8-14: 4.6% of 4935 checklistsApr 15-21: 4.6% of 5429 checklistsApr 22-30: 4.1% of 8015 checklistsMay 1-7: 3.5% of 7421 checklistsMay 8-14: 3.6% of 6910 checklistsMay 15-21: 2.8% of 5596 checklistsMay 22-31: 2.8% of 6884 checklistsJun 1-7: 2.6% of 4123 checklistsJun 8-14: 2.6% of 3957 checklistsJun 15-21: 3.0% of 3863 checklistsJun 22-30: 2.6% of 4217 checklistsJul 1-7: 2.7% of 3491 checklistsJul 8-14: 2.5% of 3044 checklistsJul 15-21: 2.9% of 3095 checklistsJul 22-31: 2.7% of 4120 checklistsAug 1-7: 3.6% of 3009 checklistsAug 8-14: 3.5% of 3007 checklistsAug 15-21: 4.2% of 2905 checklistsAug 22-31: 4.0% of 4312 checklistsSep 1-7: 5.6% of 3429 checklistsSep 8-14: 5.2% of 3217 checklistsSep 15-21: 7.6% of 3285 checklistsSep 22-30: 6.9% of 4067 checklistsOct 1-7: 6.4% of 3380 checklistsOct 8-14: 6.9% of 3460 checklistsOct 15-21: 7.2% of 3129 checklistsOct 22-31: 7.5% of 3881 checklistsNov 1-7: 7.7% of 3084 checklistsNov 8-14: 8.7% of 2869 checklistsNov 15-21: 8.7% of 2484 checklistsNov 22-30: 9.2% of 3663 checklistsDec 1-7: 8.7% of 2574 checklistsDec 8-14: 8.8% of 2680 checklistsDec 15-21: 10% of 3792 checklistsDec 22-31: 7.6% of 4236 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 West 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 West Virginia

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Monroe CountyBest late December · 23 checklists that week, 1,298 in all45%
  2. Hardy CountyBest mid November · 62 checklists that week, 4,765 in all41%
  3. Summers CountyBest late January · 157 checklists that week, 5,370 in all37%
  4. Pleasants CountyBest mid February · 85 checklists that week, 1,671 in all35%
  5. Wetzel CountyBest late January · 57 checklists that week, 1,196 in all33%
  6. Grant CountyBest early November · 67 checklists that week, 3,867 in all29%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Bluestone State ParkSummers County, best mid January · 33 checklists that week, 619 in all96%
  2. Bellepoint ParkSummers County, best early January · 20 checklists that week, 506 in all68%
  3. Marmet Pool Recreation AreaKanawha County, best the second week of December · 23 checklists that week, 1,535 in all65%
  4. Potts Creek Wildlife Management AreaMonroe County, best late September · 25 checklists that week, 217 in all55%
  5. Maple Shade Farm SpringJefferson County, best early March · 24 checklists that week, 1,259 in all42%

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

Best time of day

In West Virginia, the Bald Eagle is most often listed on checklists started between 1 and 3 pm (7.4% of those checklists).

0%2%4%6%8%12 am: too few checklists (65) to judge1 am: too few checklists (47) to judge2 am: too few checklists (46) to judge3 am: too few checklists (49) to judge4 am: too few checklists (140) to judge5 am: too few checklists (952) to judge6 am: 3.2% of 5860 checklists7 am: 4.0% of 18233 checklists8 am: 4.4% of 24468 checklists9 am: 5.6% of 22542 checklists10 am: 6.7% of 19537 checklists11 am: 7.4% of 16362 checklists12 pm: 7.1% of 14819 checklists1 pm: 7.3% of 12772 checklists2 pm: 7.6% of 11765 checklists3 pm: 6.0% of 12579 checklists4 pm: 4.3% of 11463 checklists5 pm: 3.2% of 9409 checklists6 pm: 2.2% of 6557 checklists7 pm: 1.6% of 4256 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (1589) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (377) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (147) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (86) 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
January7.5%7.5%7.4%8.0%
February7.8%7.1%6.5%6.3%
March5.6%5.7%5.7%4.8%
April5.8%4.6%4.6%4.1%
May3.5%3.6%2.8%2.8%
June2.6%2.6%3.0%2.6%
July2.7%2.5%2.9%2.7%
August3.6%3.5%4.2%4.0%
September5.6%5.2%7.6%6.9%
October6.4%6.9%7.2%7.5%
November7.7%8.7%8.7%9.2%
December8.7%8.8%10%7.6%

Neighboring states

  • Virginia: year-round, peaks mid December
  • District of Columbia: arrives early November, 7 weeks later than West Virginia
  • Maryland: year-round, peaks mid November
  • Ohio: arrives late April, 18 weeks earlier than West Virginia

Common questions

When do Bald Eagles arrive in West Virginia?
Bald Eagles are in West Virginia all year, but most are here in winter: numbers build from the second week of September, peak in the second week of December (9.4% of checklists), and fall back by late February. In the quietest week (early July) they are still on about 2.6% of checklists.
When do Bald Eagles leave West Virginia?
Bald Eagles never fully leave West Virginia: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by late February, but some are still reported in every week, about 2.6% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Bald Eagle in West Virginia?
The Bald Eagle is reported most often in the second week of December, on about 9.4% of West Virginia checklists.
Where in West Virginia are Bald Eagles seen most often?
By county, Monroe County, Hardy County, and Summers County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Bald Eagle (counties with at least 200 checklists).