WhenToBird

Megaceryle alcyon · Alcedinidae

When Do Belted Kingfishers Arrive in Oregon?

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

Belted Kingfishers are in Oregon all year, but most are here in fall: numbers build from mid July, peak in early September (14% of checklists), and fall back by early January. In the quietest week (late May) they are still on about 3.6% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildJul 15-21mid July
PeakSep 1-7early September
Fall back byJan 1-7early January
FewestMay 22-31late May

Best: early September. Here all year; numbers build from mid July and fall back by early January. Peak: on about 14% of Oregon checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augpeak season
  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%Jan 1-7: 8.8% of 34973 checklistsJan 8-14: 9.0% of 26807 checklistsJan 15-21: 8.2% of 26567 checklistsJan 22-31: 8.3% of 36019 checklistsFeb 1-7: 7.9% of 24020 checklistsFeb 8-14: 7.0% of 25765 checklistsFeb 15-21: 6.2% of 31019 checklistsFeb 22-28: 6.2% of 24582 checklistsMar 1-7: 6.5% of 24834 checklistsMar 8-14: 6.1% of 24642 checklistsMar 15-21: 5.8% of 27420 checklistsMar 22-31: 5.0% of 39913 checklistsApr 1-7: 5.0% of 28817 checklistsApr 8-14: 5.0% of 31221 checklistsApr 15-21: 5.2% of 34402 checklistsApr 22-30: 4.8% of 47144 checklistsMay 1-7: 4.2% of 37716 checklistsMay 8-14: 3.8% of 39651 checklistsMay 15-21: 3.8% of 37496 checklistsMay 22-31: 3.5% of 56967 checklistsJun 1-7: 3.4% of 35893 checklistsJun 8-14: 4.0% of 31880 checklistsJun 15-21: 4.4% of 30942 checklistsJun 22-30: 4.7% of 38478 checklistsJul 1-7: 6.1% of 27409 checklistsJul 8-14: 7.3% of 25161 checklistsJul 15-21: 8.9% of 25473 checklistsJul 22-31: 10% of 33920 checklistsAug 1-7: 12% of 24310 checklistsAug 8-14: 13% of 23675 checklistsAug 15-21: 14% of 23623 checklistsAug 22-31: 14% of 33762 checklistsSep 1-7: 15% of 25120 checklistsSep 8-14: 14% of 24458 checklistsSep 15-21: 13% of 25528 checklistsSep 22-30: 13% of 31631 checklistsOct 1-7: 13% of 25498 checklistsOct 8-14: 14% of 25161 checklistsOct 15-21: 14% of 23701 checklistsOct 22-31: 14% of 30996 checklistsNov 1-7: 14% of 21089 checklistsNov 8-14: 14% of 21880 checklistsNov 15-21: 13% of 21501 checklistsNov 22-30: 13% of 28930 checklistsDec 1-7: 12% of 19807 checklistsDec 8-14: 11% of 21022 checklistsDec 15-21: 10% of 24817 checklistsDec 22-31: 9.5% 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. Washington CountyBest late August · 2492 checklists that week, 110,376 in all31%
  2. Hood River CountyBest mid November · 156 checklists that week, 9,695 in all28%
  3. Klamath CountyBest late October · 409 checklists that week, 26,875 in all26%
  4. Tillamook CountyBest the second week of November · 623 checklists that week, 45,809 in all26%
  5. Umatilla CountyBest early November · 319 checklists that week, 17,651 in all25%
  6. Columbia CountyBest early September · 533 checklists that week, 27,750 in all24%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Whitaker Ponds Nature ParkMultnomah County, best the second week of September · 86 checklists that week, 6,890 in all93%
  2. Lake SelmacJosephine County, best early November · 26 checklists that week, 744 in all91%
  3. River Island Natural AreaClackamas County, best late March · 28 checklists that week, 770 in all88%
  4. Svensen IslandClatsop County, best late November · 20 checklists that week, 476 in all87%
  5. Koll Center WetlandsWashington County, best the second week of August · 80 checklists that week, 6,234 in all85%
  6. Klamath FallsKlamath County, best late December · 24 checklists that week, 720 in all84%

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

Best time of day

In Oregon, the Belted Kingfisher is most often listed on checklists started between 8 and 10 am (10% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%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: 7.8% of 50677 checklists7 am: 9.7% of 125347 checklists8 am: 10% of 163668 checklists9 am: 10% of 160351 checklists10 am: 9.6% of 148940 checklists11 am: 8.7% of 124743 checklists12 pm: 8.0% of 112537 checklists1 pm: 8.4% of 98999 checklists2 pm: 8.2% of 94690 checklists3 pm: 7.9% of 87923 checklists4 pm: 6.4% of 75235 checklists5 pm: 5.8% of 54504 checklists6 pm: 5.2% of 40469 checklists7 pm: 3.5% 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
January8.8%9.0%8.2%8.3%
February7.9%7.0%6.2%6.2%
March6.5%6.1%5.8%5.0%
April5.0%5.0%5.2%4.8%
May4.2%3.8%3.8%3.5%
June3.4%4.0%4.4%4.7%
July6.1%7.3%8.9%10%
August12%13%14%14%
September15%14%13%13%
October13%14%14%14%
November14%14%13%13%
December12%11%10%9.5%

Neighboring states

  • Washington: arrives mid July, in the same week than Oregon
  • Idaho: arrives mid August, 4 weeks later than Oregon
  • Nevada: arrives late July, 1 week later than Oregon
  • California: arrives the second week of July, 1 week earlier than Oregon

Common questions

When do Belted Kingfishers arrive in Oregon?
Belted Kingfishers are in Oregon all year, but most are here in fall: numbers build from mid July, peak in early September (14% of checklists), and fall back by early January. In the quietest week (late May) they are still on about 3.6% of checklists.
When do Belted Kingfishers leave Oregon?
Belted Kingfishers never fully leave Oregon: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by early January, but some are still reported in every week, about 3.6% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Belted Kingfisher in Oregon?
The Belted Kingfisher is reported most often in early September, on about 14% of Oregon checklists.
Where in Oregon are Belted Kingfishers seen most often?
By county, Washington County, Hood River County, and Klamath County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Belted Kingfisher (counties with at least 200 checklists).