WhenToBird

Poecile atricapillus · Paridae

When Do Black-capped Chickadees Arrive in West Virginia?

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

The Black-capped Chickadee is in West Virginia all year. It turns up on about 17% of checklists at its peak (mid December) and on 9.7% in its quietest week (early May).

When to look

PresentAll year
Peak weekDec 15-21mid December
Quietest weekMay 1-7early May

Best: mid December. Here all year. Peak: on about 17% of West Virginia checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maycommon
  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%5%10%15%20%Jan 1-7: 14% of 4227 checklistsJan 8-14: 13% of 3147 checklistsJan 15-21: 14% of 3410 checklistsJan 22-31: 12% of 4248 checklistsFeb 1-7: 11% of 3150 checklistsFeb 8-14: 12% of 3653 checklistsFeb 15-21: 15% of 5140 checklistsFeb 22-28: 12% of 3846 checklistsMar 1-7: 13% of 3901 checklistsMar 8-14: 12% of 3820 checklistsMar 15-21: 12% of 3781 checklistsMar 22-31: 12% of 5705 checklistsApr 1-7: 12% of 4529 checklistsApr 8-14: 12% of 4935 checklistsApr 15-21: 10% of 5429 checklistsApr 22-30: 10% of 8015 checklistsMay 1-7: 9.0% of 7421 checklistsMay 8-14: 9.6% of 6910 checklistsMay 15-21: 11% of 5596 checklistsMay 22-31: 12% of 6884 checklistsJun 1-7: 12% of 4123 checklistsJun 8-14: 10% of 3957 checklistsJun 15-21: 11% of 3863 checklistsJun 22-30: 12% of 4217 checklistsJul 1-7: 13% of 3491 checklistsJul 8-14: 9.0% of 3044 checklistsJul 15-21: 11% of 3095 checklistsJul 22-31: 12% of 4120 checklistsAug 1-7: 11% of 3009 checklistsAug 8-14: 12% of 3007 checklistsAug 15-21: 9.7% of 2905 checklistsAug 22-31: 11% of 4312 checklistsSep 1-7: 13% of 3429 checklistsSep 8-14: 11% of 3217 checklistsSep 15-21: 14% of 3285 checklistsSep 22-30: 13% of 4067 checklistsOct 1-7: 14% of 3380 checklistsOct 8-14: 14% of 3460 checklistsOct 15-21: 14% of 3129 checklistsOct 22-31: 13% of 3881 checklistsNov 1-7: 13% of 3084 checklistsNov 8-14: 12% of 2869 checklistsNov 15-21: 13% of 2484 checklistsNov 22-30: 15% of 3663 checklistsDec 1-7: 14% of 2574 checklistsDec 8-14: 15% of 2680 checklistsDec 15-21: 20% of 3792 checklistsDec 22-31: 16% of 4236 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 West Virginia 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 West Virginia

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Tucker CountyBest late November · 105 checklists that week, 9,201 in all64%
  2. Mineral CountyBest early December · 54 checklists that week, 2,389 in all58%
  3. Randolph CountyBest late December · 142 checklists that week, 6,495 in all54%
  4. Brooke CountyBest late May · 10 checklists that week, 594 in all53%
  5. Hampshire CountyBest mid February · 42 checklists that week, 1,678 in all52%
  6. Hancock CountyBest mid February · 10 checklists that week, 283 in all47%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Cranesville Swamp FeePreston County, best early June · 20 checklists that week, 373 in all81%
  2. Cathedral State ParkPreston County, best mid May · 26 checklists that week, 224 in all77%
  3. Watoga LakePocahontas County, best mid August · 20 checklists that week, 117 in all70%
  4. Cranberry Glades National Natural LandmarkPocahontas County, best early May · 39 checklists that week, 540 in all70%
  5. Blackwater Falls State ParkTucker County, best late August · 21 checklists that week, 467 in all65%

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

Best time of day

In West Virginia, the Black-capped Chickadee is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (14% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%12 am: too few checklists (65) to judge1 am: too few checklists (47) to judge2 am: too few checklists (46) to judge3 am: too few checklists (49) to judge4 am: too few checklists (140) to judge5 am: too few checklists (952) to judge6 am: 14% of 5860 checklists7 am: 15% of 18233 checklists8 am: 13% of 24468 checklists9 am: 12% of 22542 checklists10 am: 13% of 19537 checklists11 am: 12% of 16362 checklists12 pm: 11% of 14819 checklists1 pm: 13% of 12772 checklists2 pm: 12% of 11765 checklists3 pm: 13% of 12579 checklists4 pm: 13% of 11463 checklists5 pm: 11% of 9409 checklists6 pm: 9.2% of 6557 checklists7 pm: 5.0% of 4256 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (1589) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (377) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (147) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (86) 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
January14%13%14%12%
February11%12%15%12%
March13%12%12%12%
April12%12%10%10%
May9.0%9.6%11%12%
June12%10%11%12%
July13%9.0%11%12%
August11%12%9.7%11%
September13%11%14%13%
October14%14%14%13%
November13%12%13%15%
December14%15%20%16%

Neighboring states

  • Maryland: year-round, peaks the second week of December
  • Ohio: year-round, peaks the second week of April
  • Pennsylvania: year-round, peaks late November
  • New Jersey: year-round, peaks mid November

Common questions

When do Black-capped Chickadees arrive in West Virginia?
The Black-capped Chickadee is in West Virginia all year. It turns up on about 17% of checklists at its peak (mid December) and on 9.7% in its quietest week (early May).
When do Black-capped Chickadees leave West Virginia?
The Black-capped Chickadee does not leave West Virginia: it is reported all year, from 9.7% of checklists in early May to 17% in mid December.
When is the best time to see a Black-capped Chickadee in West Virginia?
The Black-capped Chickadee is reported most often in mid December, on about 17% of West Virginia checklists.
Where in West Virginia are Black-capped Chickadees seen most often?
By county, Tucker County, Mineral County, and Randolph County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Black-capped Chickadee (counties with at least 200 checklists).