WhenToBird

Megaceryle alcyon · Alcedinidae

When Do Belted Kingfishers Arrive in Georgia?

Adult female Belted Kingfisher
Photo: Jonathan Eisen, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Belted Kingfishers are in Georgia all year, but most are here in fall: numbers build from mid August, peak in late October (15% of checklists), and fall back by late January. In the quietest week (early June) they are still on about 4.6% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildAug 15-21mid August
PeakOct 22-31late October
Fall back byJan 22-31late January
FewestJun 1-7early June

Best: late October. Here all year; numbers build from mid August and fall back by late January. Peak: on about 15% of Georgia checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Juncommon
  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: 12% of 22238 checklistsJan 8-14: 11% of 16390 checklistsJan 15-21: 11% of 16779 checklistsJan 22-31: 11% of 22964 checklistsFeb 1-7: 10% of 16870 checklistsFeb 8-14: 8.4% of 19486 checklistsFeb 15-21: 6.4% of 28540 checklistsFeb 22-28: 9.1% of 17005 checklistsMar 1-7: 9.7% of 15920 checklistsMar 8-14: 9.8% of 16274 checklistsMar 15-21: 9.4% of 16432 checklistsMar 22-31: 9.5% of 25318 checklistsApr 1-7: 8.7% of 19292 checklistsApr 8-14: 8.0% of 19742 checklistsApr 15-21: 7.3% of 21498 checklistsApr 22-30: 6.5% of 29736 checklistsMay 1-7: 5.4% of 20858 checklistsMay 8-14: 5.7% of 20346 checklistsMay 15-21: 4.9% of 15859 checklistsMay 22-31: 4.8% of 19867 checklistsJun 1-7: 4.2% of 13467 checklistsJun 8-14: 4.6% of 12812 checklistsJun 15-21: 5.5% of 11379 checklistsJun 22-30: 6.2% of 14121 checklistsJul 1-7: 6.7% of 11176 checklistsJul 8-14: 7.1% of 10695 checklistsJul 15-21: 8.2% of 10655 checklistsJul 22-31: 8.6% of 15106 checklistsAug 1-7: 9.2% of 10650 checklistsAug 8-14: 9.2% of 10247 checklistsAug 15-21: 10% of 10371 checklistsAug 22-31: 10% of 15203 checklistsSep 1-7: 12% of 13007 checklistsSep 8-14: 12% of 12541 checklistsSep 15-21: 13% of 12943 checklistsSep 22-30: 13% of 17655 checklistsOct 1-7: 14% of 14646 checklistsOct 8-14: 14% of 15836 checklistsOct 15-21: 15% of 13124 checklistsOct 22-31: 15% of 15859 checklistsNov 1-7: 15% of 11711 checklistsNov 8-14: 15% of 11587 checklistsNov 15-21: 15% of 12025 checklistsNov 22-30: 15% of 16431 checklistsDec 1-7: 15% of 11256 checklistsDec 8-14: 14% of 11967 checklistsDec 15-21: 14% of 15618 checklistsDec 22-31: 13% of 22453 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 Georgia 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 Georgia

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. McDuffie CountyBest the second week of December · 17 checklists that week, 958 in all74%
  2. Crisp CountyBest mid November · 11 checklists that week, 524 in all58%
  3. Jeff Davis CountyBest late October · 13 checklists that week, 627 in all58%
  4. Elbert CountyBest the second week of September · 10 checklists that week, 614 in all50%
  5. Evans CountyBest late December · 15 checklists that week, 341 in all50%
  6. Clay CountyBest late October · 14 checklists that week, 775 in all46%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Sams LakeFayette County, best late August · 20 checklists that week, 497 in all88%
  2. Chicopee WoodsHall County, best late October · 20 checklists that week, 548 in all88%
  3. Constitution LakesDeKalb County, best early March · 46 checklists that week, 1,998 in all88%
  4. Watershed Y17 LakeGwinnett County, best mid October · 29 checklists that week, 1,631 in all85%
  5. Dearing Number Nine LakeMcDuffie County, best late December · 23 checklists that week, 534 in all82%
  6. Harbins LakeHenry County, best early December · 22 checklists that week, 871 in all80%

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

Best time of day

In Georgia, the Belted Kingfisher is most often listed on checklists started between 7 and 9 am (12% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%12 am: too few checklists (334) to judge1 am: too few checklists (277) to judge2 am: too few checklists (264) to judge3 am: too few checklists (282) to judge4 am: too few checklists (463) to judge5 am: too few checklists (1513) to judge6 am: 8.1% of 16790 checklists7 am: 12% of 73569 checklists8 am: 12% of 104956 checklists9 am: 11% of 96241 checklists10 am: 9.9% of 81903 checklists11 am: 8.9% of 66236 checklists12 pm: 8.1% of 56159 checklists1 pm: 8.6% of 48260 checklists2 pm: 9.2% of 46435 checklists3 pm: 9.4% of 46015 checklists4 pm: 9.4% of 47438 checklists5 pm: 8.3% of 38866 checklists6 pm: 8.0% of 26032 checklists7 pm: 6.4% of 16610 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (5490) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (995) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (517) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (310) 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
January12%11%11%11%
February10%8.4%6.4%9.1%
March9.7%9.8%9.4%9.5%
April8.7%8.0%7.3%6.5%
May5.4%5.7%4.9%4.8%
June4.2%4.6%5.5%6.2%
July6.7%7.1%8.2%8.6%
August9.2%9.2%10%10%
September12%12%13%13%
October14%14%15%15%
November15%15%15%15%
December15%14%14%13%

Neighboring states

  • South Carolina: arrives mid August, in the same week than Georgia
  • Alabama: arrives the second week of September, 3 weeks later than Georgia
  • Tennessee: arrives early August, 2 weeks earlier than Georgia
  • North Carolina: arrives mid August, in the same week than Georgia

Common questions

When do Belted Kingfishers arrive in Georgia?
Belted Kingfishers are in Georgia all year, but most are here in fall: numbers build from mid August, peak in late October (15% of checklists), and fall back by late January. In the quietest week (early June) they are still on about 4.6% of checklists.
When do Belted Kingfishers leave Georgia?
Belted Kingfishers never fully leave Georgia: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by late January, but some are still reported in every week, about 4.6% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Belted Kingfisher in Georgia?
The Belted Kingfisher is reported most often in late October, on about 15% of Georgia checklists.
Where in Georgia are Belted Kingfishers seen most often?
By county, McDuffie County, Crisp County, and Jeff Davis County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Belted Kingfisher (counties with at least 200 checklists).