WhenToBird

Pluvialis squatarola · Charadriidae

When Do Black-bellied Plovers Arrive in Oregon?

Adult Black-bellied Plover
Photo: Евгений Маринкин, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Black-bellied Plovers arrive in Oregon in mid July, peak in late September (1.5% of checklists), and most are gone by late December.

When to look

First arrivalsJul 15-21mid July
Common byJul 15-21mid July
PeakSep 22-30late September
Most gone byDec 22-31late December

Best: late September. First arrivals mid July; most are gone by late December. Peak: on about 1.5% of Oregon checklists.

  1. Januncommon
  2. Febrare
  3. Maruncommon
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junrare
  7. Juluncommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novcommon
  12. Decuncommon

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

0%0.5%1%1.5%2%Jan 1-7: 0.3% of 34973 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.2% of 26807 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.3% of 26567 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.2% of 36019 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.2% of 24020 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.1% of 25765 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.1% of 31019 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.2% of 24582 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.1% of 24834 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.2% of 24642 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.2% of 27420 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.2% of 39913 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.7% of 28817 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.9% of 31221 checklistsApr 15-21: 1.2% of 34402 checklistsApr 22-30: 1.7% of 47144 checklistsMay 1-7: 1.4% of 37716 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.8% of 39651 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.5% of 37496 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.2% of 56967 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.1% of 35893 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.1% of 31880 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.1% of 30942 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.1% of 38478 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.1% of 27409 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.1% of 25161 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.4% of 25473 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.6% of 33920 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.7% of 24310 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.8% of 23675 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.6% of 23623 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.7% of 33762 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.7% of 25120 checklistsSep 8-14: 1.1% of 24458 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.2% of 25528 checklistsSep 22-30: 1.8% of 31631 checklistsOct 1-7: 1.3% of 25498 checklistsOct 8-14: 1.1% of 25161 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.8% of 23701 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.7% of 30996 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.5% of 21089 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.6% of 21880 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.6% of 21501 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.5% of 28930 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.4% of 19807 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.3% of 21022 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.3% of 24817 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.3% 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. Umatilla CountyBest early October · 298 checklists that week, 17,651 in all10%
  2. Clatsop CountyBest late April · 1385 checklists that week, 44,300 in all9.8%
  3. Coos CountyBest early October · 490 checklists that week, 24,368 in all9.4%
  4. Lincoln CountyBest late April · 1941 checklists that week, 66,994 in all7.0%
  5. Tillamook CountyBest mid April · 1046 checklists that week, 45,809 in all5.8%
  6. Columbia CountyBest mid September · 550 checklists that week, 27,750 in all4.4%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Bandon Marsh National Wildlife RefugeCoos County, best late October · 27 checklists that week, 745 in all56%
  2. Knowland SloughClatsop County, best late April · 73 checklists that week, 1,303 in all53%
  3. Fort Stevens State ParkClatsop County, best early October · 47 checklists that week, 1,818 in all48%
  4. Oregon Islands National Wildlife Refuge Wilderness Area (Bayocean (historical))Tillamook County, best mid October · 50 checklists that week, 550 in all45%

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

Best time of day

In Oregon, the Black-bellied Plover is most often listed on checklists started between 8 and 10 am (0.6% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%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: 0.6% of 50677 checklists7 am: 0.5% of 125347 checklists8 am: 0.6% of 163668 checklists9 am: 0.6% of 160351 checklists10 am: 0.6% of 148940 checklists11 am: 0.6% of 124743 checklists12 pm: 0.6% of 112537 checklists1 pm: 0.5% of 98999 checklists2 pm: 0.5% of 94690 checklists3 pm: 0.6% of 87923 checklists4 pm: 0.6% of 75235 checklists5 pm: 0.5% of 54504 checklists6 pm: 0.5% of 40469 checklists7 pm: 0.2% 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
January0.3%0.2%0.3%0.2%
February0.2%0.1%0.1%0.2%
March0.1%0.2%0.2%0.2%
April0.7%0.9%1.2%1.7%
May1.4%0.8%0.5%0.2%
June0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
July0.1%0.1%0.4%0.6%
August0.7%0.8%0.6%0.7%
September0.7%1.1%1.2%1.8%
October1.3%1.1%0.8%0.7%
November0.5%0.6%0.6%0.5%
December0.4%0.3%0.3%0.3%

Neighboring states

  • Washington: arrives mid July, in the same week than Oregon
  • California: arrives early July, 2 weeks earlier than Oregon
  • North Dakota: arrives late July, 1 week later than Oregon
  • Kansas: arrives early August, 2 weeks later than Oregon

Common questions

When do Black-bellied Plovers arrive in Oregon?
Black-bellied Plovers arrive in Oregon in mid July, peak in late September (1.5% of checklists), and most are gone by late December.
When do Black-bellied Plovers leave Oregon?
Most Black-bellied Plovers have left Oregon by late December, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Black-bellied Plover in Oregon?
The Black-bellied Plover is reported most often in late September, on about 1.5% of Oregon checklists.
Where in Oregon are Black-bellied Plovers seen most often?
By county, Umatilla County, Clatsop County, and Coos County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Black-bellied Plover (counties with at least 200 checklists).