WhenToBird

Poecile atricapillus · Paridae

When Do Black-capped Chickadees Arrive in Utah?

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

The Black-capped Chickadee is in Utah all year. It turns up on about 30% of checklists at its peak (the second week of December) and on 16% in its quietest week (the second week of June).

When to look

PresentAll year
Peak weekDec 8-14the second week of December
Quietest weekJun 8-14the second week of June

Best: the second week of December. Here all year. Peak: on about 30% of Utah checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maycommon
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  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%40%Jan 1-7: 28% of 10857 checklistsJan 8-14: 28% of 8333 checklistsJan 15-21: 27% of 8360 checklistsJan 22-31: 27% of 10516 checklistsFeb 1-7: 26% of 7416 checklistsFeb 8-14: 26% of 8082 checklistsFeb 15-21: 26% of 9643 checklistsFeb 22-28: 26% of 7960 checklistsMar 1-7: 24% of 7998 checklistsMar 8-14: 24% of 8581 checklistsMar 15-21: 23% of 8637 checklistsMar 22-31: 21% of 13006 checklistsApr 1-7: 19% of 10562 checklistsApr 8-14: 17% of 11694 checklistsApr 15-21: 19% of 11382 checklistsApr 22-30: 18% of 16626 checklistsMay 1-7: 21% of 13523 checklistsMay 8-14: 19% of 14714 checklistsMay 15-21: 17% of 13711 checklistsMay 22-31: 18% of 16546 checklistsJun 1-7: 17% of 10284 checklistsJun 8-14: 16% of 9530 checklistsJun 15-21: 16% of 8854 checklistsJun 22-30: 17% of 10566 checklistsJul 1-7: 19% of 7987 checklistsJul 8-14: 21% of 7471 checklistsJul 15-21: 21% of 7240 checklistsJul 22-31: 23% of 9329 checklistsAug 1-7: 23% of 6521 checklistsAug 8-14: 24% of 6423 checklistsAug 15-21: 25% of 6208 checklistsAug 22-31: 27% of 9089 checklistsSep 1-7: 27% of 7081 checklistsSep 8-14: 25% of 7306 checklistsSep 15-21: 27% of 7208 checklistsSep 22-30: 27% of 8876 checklistsOct 1-7: 26% of 7265 checklistsOct 8-14: 25% of 7226 checklistsOct 15-21: 26% of 7007 checklistsOct 22-31: 28% of 8443 checklistsNov 1-7: 26% of 6711 checklistsNov 8-14: 28% of 6290 checklistsNov 15-21: 27% of 6169 checklistsNov 22-30: 29% of 8228 checklistsDec 1-7: 29% of 6011 checklistsDec 8-14: 29% of 6044 checklistsDec 15-21: 32% of 6721 checklistsDec 22-31: 28% of 9982 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 Utah 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 Utah

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Morgan CountyBest early January · 33 checklists that week, 3,178 in all57%
  2. Salt Lake CountyBest late October · 2162 checklists that week, 104,432 in all55%
  3. Weber CountyBest early November · 220 checklists that week, 13,172 in all51%
  4. Cache CountyBest early September · 285 checklists that week, 21,769 in all44%
  5. Utah CountyBest late September · 1171 checklists that week, 70,971 in all41%
  6. Summit CountyBest the second week of January · 190 checklists that week, 13,829 in all40%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Westminster ParkSalt Lake County, best late October · 49 checklists that week, 140 in all96%
  2. Yellow Fork CanyonSalt Lake County, best late August · 21 checklists that week, 817 in all94%
  3. Pleasant Valley ReservoirSalt Lake County, best early November · 27 checklists that week, 1,034 in all93%
  4. Liberty ParkSalt Lake County, best mid November · 24 checklists that week, 1,708 in all91%
  5. Wasatch Hollow ParkSalt Lake County, best early May · 29 checklists that week, 426 in all91%

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

Best time of day

In Utah, the Black-capped Chickadee is most often listed on checklists started between 8 and 10 am (27% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%12 am: too few checklists (242) to judge1 am: too few checklists (178) to judge2 am: too few checklists (169) to judge3 am: too few checklists (162) to judge4 am: too few checklists (284) to judge5 am: too few checklists (1984) to judge6 am: 25% of 11714 checklists7 am: 26% of 33209 checklists8 am: 28% of 46944 checklists9 am: 26% of 46290 checklists10 am: 24% of 43144 checklists11 am: 22% of 36893 checklists12 pm: 22% of 32758 checklists1 pm: 21% of 30142 checklists2 pm: 21% of 29414 checklists3 pm: 23% of 29491 checklists4 pm: 23% of 29154 checklists5 pm: 21% of 22256 checklists6 pm: 21% of 17383 checklists7 pm: 16% of 13099 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (6647) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1753) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (599) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (307) 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
January28%28%27%27%
February26%26%26%26%
March24%24%23%21%
April19%17%19%18%
May21%19%17%18%
June17%16%16%17%
July19%21%21%23%
August23%24%25%27%
September27%25%27%27%
October26%25%26%28%
November26%28%27%29%
December29%29%32%28%

Neighboring states

  • Wyoming: all year, most in winter, peaks late December
  • Colorado: year-round, peaks late November
  • Idaho: year-round, peaks early December
  • New Mexico: year-round, peaks late October

Common questions

When do Black-capped Chickadees arrive in Utah?
The Black-capped Chickadee is in Utah all year. It turns up on about 30% of checklists at its peak (the second week of December) and on 16% in its quietest week (the second week of June).
When do Black-capped Chickadees leave Utah?
The Black-capped Chickadee does not leave Utah: it is reported all year, from 16% of checklists in the second week of June to 30% in the second week of December.
When is the best time to see a Black-capped Chickadee in Utah?
The Black-capped Chickadee is reported most often in the second week of December, on about 30% of Utah checklists.
Where in Utah are Black-capped Chickadees seen most often?
By county, Morgan County, Salt Lake County, and Weber County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Black-capped Chickadee (counties with at least 200 checklists).