WhenToBird

Mniotilta varia · Parulidae

When Do Black-and-white Warblers Arrive in Florida?

Adult female Black-and-white Warbler
Photo: Donald Davesne, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Black-and-white Warblers are winter birds in Florida: the first arrive in mid July, they are common by the second week of August, peak in the second week of October (21% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of May.

When to look

First arrivalsJul 15-21mid July
Common byAug 8-14the second week of August
PeakOct 8-14the second week of October
Most gone byMay 8-14the second week of May

Best: the second week of October. First arrivals mid July; most are gone by the second week of May. Peak: on about 21% of Florida checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maycommon
  6. Junnot usually seen
  7. Juluncommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novcommon
  12. Deccommon

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

0%10%20%30%Jan 1-7: 7.9% of 74446 checklistsJan 8-14: 8.3% of 60074 checklistsJan 15-21: 8.4% of 62945 checklistsJan 22-31: 7.9% of 84954 checklistsFeb 1-7: 7.9% of 59204 checklistsFeb 8-14: 7.4% of 63259 checklistsFeb 15-21: 6.5% of 77150 checklistsFeb 22-28: 7.8% of 62850 checklistsMar 1-7: 7.9% of 58560 checklistsMar 8-14: 8.6% of 57756 checklistsMar 15-21: 9.2% of 54898 checklistsMar 22-31: 9.7% of 76702 checklistsApr 1-7: 11% of 55096 checklistsApr 8-14: 13% of 55892 checklistsApr 15-21: 17% of 59358 checklistsApr 22-30: 16% of 73124 checklistsMay 1-7: 9.3% of 47915 checklistsMay 8-14: 2.9% of 44114 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.6% of 31858 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.1% of 40723 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.1% of 31668 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.1% of 27802 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.1% of 26698 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.1% of 32346 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.2% of 23826 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.9% of 23071 checklistsJul 15-21: 1.9% of 22903 checklistsJul 22-31: 3.1% of 32952 checklistsAug 1-7: 4.5% of 25093 checklistsAug 8-14: 6.0% of 24888 checklistsAug 15-21: 6.8% of 26030 checklistsAug 22-31: 8.6% of 38612 checklistsSep 1-7: 9.9% of 31023 checklistsSep 8-14: 11% of 30022 checklistsSep 15-21: 11% of 31611 checklistsSep 22-30: 13% of 42108 checklistsOct 1-7: 18% of 36219 checklistsOct 8-14: 22% of 43113 checklistsOct 15-21: 21% of 40987 checklistsOct 22-31: 16% of 53457 checklistsNov 1-7: 12% of 38587 checklistsNov 8-14: 10% of 39208 checklistsNov 15-21: 9.1% of 39729 checklistsNov 22-30: 9.0% of 54965 checklistsDec 1-7: 9.0% of 42070 checklistsDec 8-14: 9.0% of 43424 checklistsDec 15-21: 9.8% of 50581 checklistsDec 22-31: 8.8% of 82405 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 Florida 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 Florida

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Miami-Dade CountyBest the second week of October · 2344 checklists that week, 118,849 in all40%
  2. Lafayette CountyBest the second week of October · 41 checklists that week, 1,203 in all35%
  3. Broward CountyBest the second week of October · 1592 checklists that week, 57,530 in all34%
  4. Alachua CountyBest the second week of October · 2955 checklists that week, 120,363 in all33%
  5. Columbia CountyBest the second week of October · 112 checklists that week, 5,568 in all29%
  6. Palm Beach CountyBest the second week of October · 2448 checklists that week, 118,595 in all29%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Enchanted LakeMiami-Dade County, best the second week of October · 74 checklists that week, 1,558 in all87%
  2. Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park (south)Alachua County, best the second week of October · 104 checklists that week, 2,172 in all87%
  3. Newnans Lake State ForestAlachua County, best mid October · 43 checklists that week, 553 in all84%
  4. Kendale Lakes ParkMiami-Dade County, best early October · 28 checklists that week, 665 in all84%
  5. Black Creek ParkClay County, best the second week of October · 48 checklists that week, 650 in all84%

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

Best time of day

In Florida, the Black-and-white Warbler 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 (771) to judge1 am: too few checklists (771) to judge2 am: too few checklists (701) to judge3 am: too few checklists (752) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1378) to judge5 am: too few checklists (9462) to judge6 am: 6.3% of 94591 checklists7 am: 12% of 296183 checklists8 am: 12% of 319987 checklists9 am: 11% of 254830 checklists10 am: 9.9% of 209480 checklists11 am: 9.2% of 163924 checklists12 pm: 9.0% of 133478 checklists1 pm: 8.4% of 125012 checklists2 pm: 8.2% of 125299 checklists3 pm: 7.3% of 131072 checklists4 pm: 6.1% of 134410 checklists5 pm: 4.8% of 113373 checklists6 pm: 3.1% of 69886 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (37509) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (8966) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2093) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1485) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (862) 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
January7.9%8.3%8.4%7.9%
February7.9%7.4%6.5%7.8%
March7.9%8.6%9.2%9.7%
April11%13%17%16%
May9.3%2.9%0.6%0.1%
June0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
July0.2%0.9%1.9%3.1%
August4.5%6.0%6.8%8.6%
September9.9%11%11%13%
October18%22%21%16%
November12%10%9.1%9.0%
December9.0%9.0%9.8%8.8%

Neighboring states

  • Georgia: arrives early March, 18 weeks earlier than Florida
  • South Carolina: arrives mid August, 4 weeks later than Florida
  • Alabama: arrives the second week of March, 17 weeks earlier than Florida
  • Mississippi: arrives the second week of March, 17 weeks earlier than Florida

Common questions

When do Black-and-white Warblers arrive in Florida?
Black-and-white Warblers are winter birds in Florida: the first arrive in mid July, they are common by the second week of August, peak in the second week of October (21% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of May.
When do Black-and-white Warblers leave Florida?
Most Black-and-white Warblers have left Florida by the second week of May, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until mid May.
When is the best time to see a Black-and-white Warbler in Florida?
The Black-and-white Warbler is reported most often in the second week of October, on about 21% of Florida checklists.
Where in Florida are Black-and-white Warblers seen most often?
By county, Miami-Dade County, Lafayette County, and Broward County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Black-and-white Warbler (counties with at least 200 checklists).