WhenToBird

Poecile atricapillus · Paridae

When Do Black-capped Chickadees Arrive in California?

Adult Black-capped Chickadee
Photo: Marcel_Pepin, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Black-capped Chickadees reach California in the second week of June, are common by mid June, peak in the second week of September (1.3% of checklists), and most are gone by early February.

When to look

First arrivalsJun 8-14the second week of June
Common byJun 15-21mid June
PeakSep 8-14the second week of September
Most gone byFeb 1-7early February

Best: the second week of September. First arrivals the second week of June; most are gone by early February. Peak: on about 1.3% of California checklists.

  1. Januncommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Maruncommon
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novcommon
  12. Deccommon

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

0%0.5%1%1.5%Jan 1-7: 0.6% of 112336 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.4% of 85518 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.5% of 86488 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.5% of 116174 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.5% of 75171 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.5% of 84467 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.4% of 105683 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.4% of 83396 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.5% of 77470 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.4% of 75180 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.4% of 80770 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.5% of 114116 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.5% of 84057 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.6% of 83692 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.7% of 89242 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.5% of 114289 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.5% of 85728 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.4% of 91984 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.4% of 75478 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.4% of 106250 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.4% of 70051 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.4% of 67485 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.5% of 66269 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.6% of 79172 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.6% of 62877 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.6% of 60328 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.6% of 59705 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.7% of 83796 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.6% of 60215 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.6% of 60172 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.8% of 59877 checklistsAug 22-31: 1.1% of 89107 checklistsSep 1-7: 1.4% of 72000 checklistsSep 8-14: 1.2% of 71228 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.3% of 76808 checklistsSep 22-30: 1.1% of 100204 checklistsOct 1-7: 1.0% of 76571 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.8% of 80874 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.8% of 74581 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.7% of 97498 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.6% of 70851 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.6% of 72431 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.5% of 66767 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.6% of 94737 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.7% of 65393 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.6% of 67449 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.7% of 83421 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.5% of 124993 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 California 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 California

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Humboldt CountyBest the second week of September · 1938 checklists that week, 95,963 in all41%
  2. Del Norte CountyBest the second week of September · 415 checklists that week, 16,363 in all17%
  3. Siskiyou CountyBest the second week of January · 367 checklists that week, 24,165 in all2.6%
  4. Trinity CountyBest the second week of September · 177 checklists that week, 9,037 in all1.2%
  5. Mendocino CountyBest early December · 751 checklists that week, 47,934 in all0.1%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Arcata Marsh & Wildlife Sanctuary (northeast)Humboldt County, best the second week of September · 32 checklists that week, 1,138 in all96%
  2. City of Arcata OpenspaceHumboldt County, best late August · 34 checklists that week, 586 in all96%
  3. City of Eureka lotHumboldt County, best mid September · 38 checklists that week, 337 in all95%
  4. Carlson ParkHumboldt County, best early September · 29 checklists that week, 262 in all93%
  5. Shay ParkHumboldt County, best early September · 43 checklists that week, 599 in all93%

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

Best time of day

In California, the Black-capped Chickadee is most often listed on checklists started between 8 and 10 am (0.9% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%12 am: too few checklists (1688) to judge1 am: too few checklists (1451) to judge2 am: too few checklists (1402) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1743) to judge4 am: too few checklists (4647) to judge5 am: too few checklists (32158) to judge6 am: 0.3% of 186053 checklists7 am: 0.7% of 444086 checklists8 am: 0.9% of 535846 checklists9 am: 0.9% of 486061 checklists10 am: 0.7% of 411130 checklists11 am: 0.6% of 325798 checklists12 pm: 0.6% of 269132 checklists1 pm: 0.5% of 244762 checklists2 pm: 0.5% of 235420 checklists3 pm: 0.5% of 232365 checklists4 pm: 0.4% of 208688 checklists5 pm: 0.4% of 146104 checklists6 pm: 0.3% of 96867 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (50942) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (14803) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (5561) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (3546) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (2092) 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
January0.6%0.4%0.5%0.5%
February0.5%0.5%0.4%0.4%
March0.5%0.4%0.4%0.5%
April0.5%0.6%0.7%0.5%
May0.5%0.4%0.4%0.4%
June0.4%0.4%0.5%0.6%
July0.6%0.6%0.6%0.7%
August0.6%0.6%0.8%1.1%
September1.4%1.2%1.3%1.1%
October1.0%0.8%0.8%0.7%
November0.6%0.6%0.5%0.6%
December0.7%0.6%0.7%0.5%

Neighboring states

  • Utah: year-round, peaks the second week of December
  • Oregon: year-round, peaks early December
  • Idaho: year-round, peaks early December
  • New Mexico: year-round, peaks late October

Common questions

When do Black-capped Chickadees arrive in California?
Black-capped Chickadees reach California in the second week of June, are common by mid June, peak in the second week of September (1.3% of checklists), and most are gone by early February.
When do Black-capped Chickadees leave California?
Most Black-capped Chickadees have left California by early February, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until mid February.
When is the best time to see a Black-capped Chickadee in California?
The Black-capped Chickadee is reported most often in the second week of September, on about 1.3% of California checklists.
Where in California are Black-capped Chickadees seen most often?
By county, Humboldt County, Del Norte County, and Siskiyou County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Black-capped Chickadee (counties with at least 200 checklists).