WhenToBird

Strix varia · Strigidae

When Do Barred Owls Arrive in Ohio?

Adult Barred Owl
Photo: David Bird, CC0 1.0 via iNaturalist

Barred Owls reach Ohio in early December, are common by mid December, peak in late April (2.4% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of October.

When to look

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

Best: late April. First arrivals early December; most are gone by the second week of October. Peak: on about 2.4% of Ohio checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novuncommon
  12. Deccommon

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

0%1%2%3%Jan 1-7: 1.2% of 46637 checklistsJan 8-14: 1.2% of 31056 checklistsJan 15-21: 1.0% of 30129 checklistsJan 22-31: 1.2% of 38665 checklistsFeb 1-7: 1.2% of 27203 checklistsFeb 8-14: 1.3% of 30626 checklistsFeb 15-21: 1.3% of 40705 checklistsFeb 22-28: 1.7% of 31391 checklistsMar 1-7: 1.6% of 32914 checklistsMar 8-14: 1.8% of 33973 checklistsMar 15-21: 1.6% of 33678 checklistsMar 22-31: 1.6% of 49889 checklistsApr 1-7: 1.7% of 41225 checklistsApr 8-14: 2.1% of 47174 checklistsApr 15-21: 2.3% of 47017 checklistsApr 22-30: 2.7% of 73055 checklistsMay 1-7: 2.3% of 80637 checklistsMay 8-14: 1.7% of 102552 checklistsMay 15-21: 1.8% of 64582 checklistsMay 22-31: 1.7% of 52766 checklistsJun 1-7: 1.7% of 29279 checklistsJun 8-14: 1.6% of 25773 checklistsJun 15-21: 1.5% of 23163 checklistsJun 22-30: 1.2% of 27794 checklistsJul 1-7: 1.1% of 23334 checklistsJul 8-14: 1.1% of 22147 checklistsJul 15-21: 1.0% of 20998 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.8% of 29749 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.8% of 22899 checklistsAug 8-14: 1.0% of 21972 checklistsAug 15-21: 1.0% of 22215 checklistsAug 22-31: 1.2% of 35087 checklistsSep 1-7: 1.3% of 29148 checklistsSep 8-14: 1.5% of 28042 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.4% of 26751 checklistsSep 22-30: 1.3% of 32398 checklistsOct 1-7: 1.3% of 26209 checklistsOct 8-14: 1.0% of 26809 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.8% of 23504 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.8% of 33269 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.9% of 25563 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.8% of 23810 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.7% of 22127 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.9% of 29449 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.7% of 22370 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.9% of 21581 checklistsDec 15-21: 1.2% of 24232 checklistsDec 22-31: 1.0% of 36084 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 Ohio 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 Ohio

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Perry CountyBest early April · 170 checklists that week, 6,489 in all17%
  2. Hardin CountyBest the second week of May · 226 checklists that week, 4,583 in all17%
  3. Brown CountyBest early March · 33 checklists that week, 1,793 in all15%
  4. Lawrence CountyBest the second week of October · 35 checklists that week, 3,077 in all13%
  5. Monroe CountyBest late August · 14 checklists that week, 1,141 in all12%
  6. Mahoning CountyBest the second week of May · 446 checklists that week, 14,421 in all9.5%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Elywood ParkLorain County, best early January · 24 checklists that week, 216 in all95%
  2. Huntington Reservation (Huntington Beach)Cuyahoga County, best late January · 26 checklists that week, 419 in all86%
  3. Poland Village ParkMahoning County, best late April · 24 checklists that week, 397 in all73%
  4. Lawrence Woods Dedicated Nature PreserveHardin County, best late May · 28 checklists that week, 523 in all58%
  5. Whetstone ParkFranklin County, best mid April · 27 checklists that week, 355 in all52%
  6. Avon Lake Reservation - Phase IILorain County, best late May · 20 checklists that week, 739 in all51%

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

Best time of day

In Ohio, the Barred Owl is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 pm (3.4% of those checklists).

0%1%2%3%4%12 am: too few checklists (574) to judge1 am: too few checklists (609) to judge2 am: too few checklists (466) to judge3 am: too few checklists (478) to judge4 am: too few checklists (662) to judge5 am: too few checklists (4366) to judge6 am: 3.2% of 43093 checklists7 am: 1.5% of 142017 checklists8 am: 1.1% of 205296 checklists9 am: 1.1% of 196322 checklists10 am: 0.9% of 170882 checklists11 am: 0.8% of 144567 checklists12 pm: 0.8% of 126551 checklists1 pm: 0.9% of 117855 checklists2 pm: 1.1% of 112869 checklists3 pm: 1.4% of 109786 checklists4 pm: 1.9% of 103116 checklists5 pm: 2.5% of 78409 checklists6 pm: 3.4% of 56785 checklists7 pm: 3.4% of 37923 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (14954) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2710) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (854) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (486) 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
January1.2%1.2%1.0%1.2%
February1.2%1.3%1.3%1.7%
March1.6%1.8%1.6%1.6%
April1.7%2.1%2.3%2.7%
May2.3%1.7%1.8%1.7%
June1.7%1.6%1.5%1.2%
July1.1%1.1%1.0%0.8%
August0.8%1.0%1.0%1.2%
September1.3%1.5%1.4%1.3%
October1.3%1.0%0.8%0.8%
November0.9%0.8%0.7%0.9%
December0.7%0.9%1.2%1.0%

Neighboring states

  • West Virginia: arrives early February, 8 weeks later than Ohio
  • Indiana: arrives early December, in the same week than Ohio
  • Michigan: arrives the second week of December, 1 week later than Ohio
  • Kentucky: arrives late January, 7 weeks later than Ohio

Common questions

When do Barred Owls arrive in Ohio?
Barred Owls reach Ohio in early December, are common by mid December, peak in late April (2.4% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of October.
When do Barred Owls leave Ohio?
Most Barred Owls have left Ohio by the second week of October, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until early November.
When is the best time to see a Barred Owl in Ohio?
The Barred Owl is reported most often in late April, on about 2.4% of Ohio checklists.
Where in Ohio are Barred Owls seen most often?
By county, Perry County, Hardin County, and Brown County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Barred Owl (counties with at least 200 checklists).