WhenToBird

Megaceryle alcyon · Alcedinidae

When Do Belted Kingfishers Arrive in South Carolina?

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

Belted Kingfishers are in South Carolina all year, but most are here in fall: numbers build from mid August, peak in late October (21% of checklists), and fall back by late January. In the quietest week (late May) they are still on about 2.2% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildAug 15-21mid August
PeakOct 22-31late October
Fall back byJan 22-31late January
FewestMay 22-31late May

Best: late October. Here all year; numbers build from mid August and fall back by late January. Peak: on about 21% of South Carolina checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Juluncommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%10%20%30%Jan 1-7: 16% of 15487 checklistsJan 8-14: 15% of 11691 checklistsJan 15-21: 13% of 11994 checklistsJan 22-31: 12% of 16225 checklistsFeb 1-7: 11% of 12192 checklistsFeb 8-14: 10% of 14044 checklistsFeb 15-21: 9.0% of 18483 checklistsFeb 22-28: 11% of 12045 checklistsMar 1-7: 10% of 11511 checklistsMar 8-14: 9.9% of 11704 checklistsMar 15-21: 9.0% of 11526 checklistsMar 22-31: 9.2% of 17386 checklistsApr 1-7: 7.7% of 13148 checklistsApr 8-14: 6.5% of 13193 checklistsApr 15-21: 5.3% of 13936 checklistsApr 22-30: 3.9% of 19002 checklistsMay 1-7: 3.1% of 14133 checklistsMay 8-14: 2.6% of 13668 checklistsMay 15-21: 2.3% of 11064 checklistsMay 22-31: 2.4% of 14461 checklistsJun 1-7: 2.0% of 10231 checklistsJun 8-14: 2.4% of 9417 checklistsJun 15-21: 2.9% of 8012 checklistsJun 22-30: 3.8% of 9720 checklistsJul 1-7: 4.3% of 7907 checklistsJul 8-14: 4.5% of 7338 checklistsJul 15-21: 5.9% of 7312 checklistsJul 22-31: 7.0% of 10877 checklistsAug 1-7: 8.9% of 7816 checklistsAug 8-14: 9.9% of 7655 checklistsAug 15-21: 12% of 7797 checklistsAug 22-31: 13% of 11246 checklistsSep 1-7: 13% of 8956 checklistsSep 8-14: 15% of 8929 checklistsSep 15-21: 15% of 9389 checklistsSep 22-30: 19% of 13028 checklistsOct 1-7: 19% of 11063 checklistsOct 8-14: 20% of 10968 checklistsOct 15-21: 22% of 10264 checklistsOct 22-31: 21% of 12917 checklistsNov 1-7: 20% of 8802 checklistsNov 8-14: 20% of 8339 checklistsNov 15-21: 20% of 8798 checklistsNov 22-30: 20% of 12925 checklistsDec 1-7: 18% of 8541 checklistsDec 8-14: 17% of 8609 checklistsDec 15-21: 17% of 9961 checklistsDec 22-31: 16% of 17541 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 South Carolina 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 South Carolina

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Marlboro CountyBest mid November · 10 checklists that week, 686 in all59%
  2. Georgetown CountyBest mid October · 756 checklists that week, 32,234 in all45%
  3. Colleton CountyBest late January · 205 checklists that week, 8,909 in all41%
  4. Fairfield CountyBest early December · 13 checklists that week, 768 in all41%
  5. Barnwell CountyBest late November · 30 checklists that week, 1,096 in all38%
  6. Williamsburg CountyBest the second week of December · 34 checklists that week, 1,512 in all37%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Heritage Shores Nature PreserveHorry County, best late November · 32 checklists that week, 661 in all87%
  2. Bear Island Wildlife Management AreaColleton County, best late October · 58 checklists that week, 1,645 in all86%
  3. Lake JohnsonSpartanburg County, best late December · 23 checklists that week, 688 in all84%
  4. Hartwell LakeAnderson County, best early July · 24 checklists that week, 715 in all83%
  5. Kathwood LakesAiken County, best late December · 30 checklists that week, 1,756 in all80%

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

Best time of day

In South Carolina, the Belted Kingfisher is most often listed on checklists started between 7 and 9 am (14% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%20%12 am: too few checklists (222) to judge1 am: too few checklists (160) to judge2 am: too few checklists (132) to judge3 am: too few checklists (212) to judge4 am: too few checklists (267) to judge5 am: too few checklists (1898) to judge6 am: 10% of 19280 checklists7 am: 15% of 66492 checklists8 am: 14% of 73941 checklists9 am: 13% of 63039 checklists10 am: 11% of 52652 checklists11 am: 9.9% of 41908 checklists12 pm: 9.4% of 36782 checklists1 pm: 10% of 33300 checklists2 pm: 11% of 32248 checklists3 pm: 9.9% of 35451 checklists4 pm: 8.9% of 34410 checklists5 pm: 6.6% of 27073 checklists6 pm: 5.0% of 17375 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (10313) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (2756) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (672) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (412) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (256) 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
January16%15%13%12%
February11%10%9.0%11%
March10%9.9%9.0%9.2%
April7.7%6.5%5.3%3.9%
May3.1%2.6%2.3%2.4%
June2.0%2.4%2.9%3.8%
July4.3%4.5%5.9%7.0%
August8.9%9.9%12%13%
September13%15%15%19%
October19%20%22%21%
November20%20%20%20%
December18%17%17%16%

Neighboring states

  • North Carolina: arrives mid August, in the same week than South Carolina
  • Georgia: arrives mid August, in the same week than South Carolina
  • Tennessee: arrives early August, 2 weeks earlier than South Carolina
  • Virginia: arrives the second week of August, 1 week earlier than South Carolina

Common questions

When do Belted Kingfishers arrive in South Carolina?
Belted Kingfishers are in South Carolina all year, but most are here in fall: numbers build from mid August, peak in late October (21% of checklists), and fall back by late January. In the quietest week (late May) they are still on about 2.2% of checklists.
When do Belted Kingfishers leave South Carolina?
Belted Kingfishers never fully leave South Carolina: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by late January, but some are still reported in every week, about 2.2% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Belted Kingfisher in South Carolina?
The Belted Kingfisher is reported most often in late October, on about 21% of South Carolina checklists.
Where in South Carolina are Belted Kingfishers seen most often?
By county, Marlboro County, Georgetown County, and Colleton County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Belted Kingfisher (counties with at least 200 checklists).