WhenToBird

Patagioenas fasciata · Columbidae

When Do Band-tailed Pigeons Arrive in Oregon?

Adult Band-tailed Pigeon
Photo: Irene, CC0 1.0 via iNaturalist

Band-tailed Pigeons reach Oregon in the second week of March, are common by early April, peak in the second week of May (8.2% of checklists), and most are gone by early October.

When to look

First arrivalsMar 8-14the second week of March
Common byApr 1-7early April
PeakMay 8-14the second week of May
Most gone byOct 1-7early October

Best: the second week of May. First arrivals the second week of March; most are gone by early October. Peak: on about 8.2% of Oregon checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febrare
  3. Maruncommon
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novrare
  12. Decnot usually seen

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

0%5%10%Jan 1-7: 0.1% of 34973 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.1% of 26807 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.1% of 26567 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.2% of 36019 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.2% of 24020 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.2% of 25765 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.4% of 31019 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.6% of 24582 checklistsMar 1-7: 1.0% of 24834 checklistsMar 8-14: 1.2% of 24642 checklistsMar 15-21: 1.6% of 27420 checklistsMar 22-31: 2.3% of 39913 checklistsApr 1-7: 3.5% of 28817 checklistsApr 8-14: 4.5% of 31221 checklistsApr 15-21: 6.2% of 34402 checklistsApr 22-30: 7.3% of 47144 checklistsMay 1-7: 8.3% of 37716 checklistsMay 8-14: 8.2% of 39651 checklistsMay 15-21: 8.3% of 37496 checklistsMay 22-31: 7.2% of 56967 checklistsJun 1-7: 7.4% of 35893 checklistsJun 8-14: 7.0% of 31880 checklistsJun 15-21: 6.9% of 30942 checklistsJun 22-30: 5.8% of 38478 checklistsJul 1-7: 6.6% of 27409 checklistsJul 8-14: 6.0% of 25161 checklistsJul 15-21: 5.6% of 25473 checklistsJul 22-31: 5.9% of 33920 checklistsAug 1-7: 5.1% of 24310 checklistsAug 8-14: 4.9% of 23675 checklistsAug 15-21: 4.5% of 23623 checklistsAug 22-31: 4.5% of 33762 checklistsSep 1-7: 5.0% of 25120 checklistsSep 8-14: 4.7% of 24458 checklistsSep 15-21: 4.6% of 25528 checklistsSep 22-30: 4.3% of 31631 checklistsOct 1-7: 3.6% of 25498 checklistsOct 8-14: 2.7% of 25161 checklistsOct 15-21: 1.6% of 23701 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.9% of 30996 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.4% of 21089 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.3% of 21880 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.2% of 21501 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.2% of 28930 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.1% of 19807 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.1% of 21022 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.1% of 24817 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.1% of 37592 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 Oregon 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 Oregon

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Columbia CountyBest late June · 487 checklists that week, 27,750 in all23%
  2. Josephine CountyBest mid September · 350 checklists that week, 20,837 in all22%
  3. Coos CountyBest mid May · 545 checklists that week, 24,368 in all22%
  4. Tillamook CountyBest early June · 1239 checklists that week, 45,809 in all22%
  5. Benton CountyBest early June · 2339 checklists that week, 144,626 in all20%
  6. Lincoln CountyBest late May · 1751 checklists that week, 66,994 in all18%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Sutton LakeLane County, best late May · 39 checklists that week, 1,189 in all76%
  2. Anderson ParkBenton County, best mid June · 20 checklists that week, 143 in all75%
  3. City of Portland Reservoir Number 3Multnomah County, best late May · 53 checklists that week, 1,693 in all72%
  4. Siltcoos Lagoon (southeast)Lane County, best late August · 20 checklists that week, 459 in all67%

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

Best time of day

In Oregon, the Band-tailed Pigeon is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (7.6% of those checklists).

0%5%10%12 am: too few checklists (1505) to judge1 am: too few checklists (675) to judge2 am: too few checklists (626) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1641) to judge4 am: too few checklists (3696) to judge5 am: too few checklists (14524) to judge6 am: 8.9% of 50677 checklists7 am: 7.0% of 125347 checklists8 am: 5.4% of 163668 checklists9 am: 4.2% of 160351 checklists10 am: 3.4% of 148940 checklists11 am: 2.6% of 124743 checklists12 pm: 2.2% of 112537 checklists1 pm: 1.8% of 98999 checklists2 pm: 1.9% of 94690 checklists3 pm: 2.1% of 87923 checklists4 pm: 2.4% of 75235 checklists5 pm: 3.1% of 54504 checklists6 pm: 3.0% of 40469 checklists7 pm: 2.0% of 33675 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (18715) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (5839) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (2704) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (1549) 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%0.2%
February0.2%0.2%0.4%0.6%
March1.0%1.2%1.6%2.3%
April3.5%4.5%6.2%7.3%
May8.3%8.2%8.3%7.2%
June7.4%7.0%6.9%5.8%
July6.6%6.0%5.6%5.9%
August5.1%4.9%4.5%4.5%
September5.0%4.7%4.6%4.3%
October3.6%2.7%1.6%0.9%
November0.4%0.3%0.2%0.2%
December0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%

Neighboring states

  • Washington: arrives early March, 1 week earlier than Oregon
  • Nevada: arrives mid March, 1 week later than Oregon
  • California: arrives the second week of March, in the same week than Oregon
  • Arizona: arrives early May, 7 weeks later than Oregon

Common questions

When do Band-tailed Pigeons arrive in Oregon?
Band-tailed Pigeons reach Oregon in the second week of March, are common by early April, peak in the second week of May (8.2% of checklists), and most are gone by early October.
When do Band-tailed Pigeons leave Oregon?
Most Band-tailed Pigeons have left Oregon by early October, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until mid October.
When is the best time to see a Band-tailed Pigeon in Oregon?
The Band-tailed Pigeon is reported most often in the second week of May, on about 8.2% of Oregon checklists.
Where in Oregon are Band-tailed Pigeons seen most often?
By county, Columbia County, Josephine County, and Coos County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Band-tailed Pigeon (counties with at least 200 checklists).