WhenToBird

Pica hudsonia · Corvidae

When Do Black-billed Magpies Arrive in Idaho?

Adult Black-billed Magpie
Photo: Mayela y Ramón, CC BY-SA 4.0 via iNaturalist

The Black-billed Magpie is in Idaho all year. It turns up on about 42% of checklists at its peak (mid November) and on 16% in its quietest week (mid July).

When to look

PresentAll year
Peak weekNov 15-21mid November
Quietest weekJul 15-21mid July

Best: mid November. Here all year. Peak: on about 42% of Idaho checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  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%20%40%60%Jan 1-7: 42% of 9357 checklistsJan 8-14: 42% of 6408 checklistsJan 15-21: 40% of 6358 checklistsJan 22-31: 40% of 8601 checklistsFeb 1-7: 39% of 5611 checklistsFeb 8-14: 38% of 6090 checklistsFeb 15-21: 37% of 7973 checklistsFeb 22-28: 39% of 5866 checklistsMar 1-7: 39% of 6144 checklistsMar 8-14: 39% of 6456 checklistsMar 15-21: 39% of 6786 checklistsMar 22-31: 39% of 9539 checklistsApr 1-7: 37% of 7202 checklistsApr 8-14: 35% of 7608 checklistsApr 15-21: 36% of 8069 checklistsApr 22-30: 35% of 10973 checklistsMay 1-7: 35% of 9481 checklistsMay 8-14: 35% of 11318 checklistsMay 15-21: 35% of 9141 checklistsMay 22-31: 33% of 13984 checklistsJun 1-7: 27% of 8897 checklistsJun 8-14: 25% of 8504 checklistsJun 15-21: 25% of 8078 checklistsJun 22-30: 20% of 9665 checklistsJul 1-7: 19% of 7144 checklistsJul 8-14: 17% of 6557 checklistsJul 15-21: 17% of 6430 checklistsJul 22-31: 15% of 8696 checklistsAug 1-7: 17% of 5896 checklistsAug 8-14: 18% of 5643 checklistsAug 15-21: 20% of 6151 checklistsAug 22-31: 23% of 7863 checklistsSep 1-7: 26% of 5769 checklistsSep 8-14: 31% of 5646 checklistsSep 15-21: 34% of 5460 checklistsSep 22-30: 38% of 6363 checklistsOct 1-7: 40% of 4980 checklistsOct 8-14: 41% of 5096 checklistsOct 15-21: 43% of 4878 checklistsOct 22-31: 42% of 6426 checklistsNov 1-7: 43% of 4822 checklistsNov 8-14: 42% of 4999 checklistsNov 15-21: 42% of 4601 checklistsNov 22-30: 43% of 6027 checklistsDec 1-7: 42% of 4180 checklistsDec 8-14: 40% of 4775 checklistsDec 15-21: 40% of 6522 checklistsDec 22-31: 40% of 7792 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 Idaho 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 Idaho

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Bear Lake CountyBest mid January · 12 checklists that week, 1,581 in all91%
  2. Adams CountyBest early March · 94 checklists that week, 5,826 in all86%
  3. Teton CountyBest the second week of November · 97 checklists that week, 6,406 in all85%
  4. Washington CountyBest late December · 14 checklists that week, 926 in all82%
  5. Jerome CountyBest late December · 12 checklists that week, 804 in all81%
  6. Power CountyBest late January · 23 checklists that week, 2,278 in all81%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Eagle Island State ParkAda County, best early May · 24 checklists that week, 1,077 in all100%
  2. Mason CreekCanyon County, best mid October · 49 checklists that week, 1,694 in all99%
  3. Morley Nelson Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation AreaElmore County, best late October · 31 checklists that week, 1,056 in all99%
  4. Hubbard ReservoirAda County, best the second week of November · 21 checklists that week, 682 in all98%
  5. Rollandet ParkBonneville County, best early January · 22 checklists that week, 125 in all97%

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

Best time of day

In Idaho, the Black-billed Magpie is most often listed on checklists started between 8 and 10 am (39% of those checklists).

0%20%40%60%12 am: too few checklists (180) to judge1 am: too few checklists (176) to judge2 am: too few checklists (169) to judge3 am: too few checklists (164) to judge4 am: too few checklists (450) to judge5 am: too few checklists (2270) to judge6 am: 29% of 9122 checklists7 am: 33% of 22204 checklists8 am: 40% of 38672 checklists9 am: 38% of 38930 checklists10 am: 37% of 37338 checklists11 am: 34% of 33508 checklists12 pm: 33% of 28544 checklists1 pm: 33% of 25774 checklists2 pm: 32% of 24296 checklists3 pm: 31% of 21784 checklists4 pm: 30% of 19051 checklists5 pm: 28% of 14150 checklists6 pm: 26% of 10014 checklists7 pm: 24% of 7495 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (4352) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1449) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (525) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (208) 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
January42%42%40%40%
February39%38%37%39%
March39%39%39%39%
April37%35%36%35%
May35%35%35%33%
June27%25%25%20%
July19%17%17%15%
August17%18%20%23%
September26%31%34%38%
October40%41%43%42%
November43%42%42%43%
December42%40%40%40%

Neighboring states

  • Montana: year-round, peaks the second week of December
  • Utah: year-round, peaks the second week of January
  • Oregon: summer visitor, peaks late May
  • Washington: summer visitor, peaks mid May

Common questions

When do Black-billed Magpies arrive in Idaho?
The Black-billed Magpie is in Idaho all year. It turns up on about 42% of checklists at its peak (mid November) and on 16% in its quietest week (mid July).
When do Black-billed Magpies leave Idaho?
The Black-billed Magpie does not leave Idaho: it is reported all year, from 16% of checklists in mid July to 42% in mid November.
When is the best time to see a Black-billed Magpie in Idaho?
The Black-billed Magpie is reported most often in mid November, on about 42% of Idaho checklists.
Where in Idaho are Black-billed Magpies seen most often?
By county, Bear Lake County, Adams County, and Teton County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Black-billed Magpie (counties with at least 200 checklists).