WhenToBird

Poecile atricapillus · Paridae

When Do Black-capped Chickadees Arrive in Wyoming?

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

Black-capped Chickadees are in Wyoming all year, but most are here in winter: numbers build from mid November, peak in late December (28% of checklists), and fall back by late March. In the quietest week (late June) they are still on about 8.1% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildNov 15-21mid November
PeakDec 22-31late December
Fall back byMar 22-31late March
FewestJun 22-30late June

Best: late December. Here all year; numbers build from mid November and fall back by late March. Peak: on about 28% of Wyoming checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maycommon
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%10%20%30%Jan 1-7: 29% of 2543 checklistsJan 8-14: 26% of 2114 checklistsJan 15-21: 27% of 1984 checklistsJan 22-31: 25% of 2605 checklistsFeb 1-7: 27% of 1940 checklistsFeb 8-14: 26% of 1954 checklistsFeb 15-21: 29% of 2575 checklistsFeb 22-28: 26% of 1932 checklistsMar 1-7: 26% of 2486 checklistsMar 8-14: 23% of 2535 checklistsMar 15-21: 22% of 2726 checklistsMar 22-31: 18% of 4349 checklistsApr 1-7: 17% of 3300 checklistsApr 8-14: 16% of 3500 checklistsApr 15-21: 16% of 3701 checklistsApr 22-30: 15% of 5887 checklistsMay 1-7: 17% of 5341 checklistsMay 8-14: 17% of 6910 checklistsMay 15-21: 15% of 6884 checklistsMay 22-31: 14% of 10652 checklistsJun 1-7: 10% of 6807 checklistsJun 8-14: 9.0% of 6714 checklistsJun 15-21: 7.8% of 6708 checklistsJun 22-30: 8.5% of 8160 checklistsJul 1-7: 8.0% of 5755 checklistsJul 8-14: 9.9% of 5379 checklistsJul 15-21: 11% of 5299 checklistsJul 22-31: 12% of 6830 checklistsAug 1-7: 12% of 4581 checklistsAug 8-14: 12% of 4625 checklistsAug 15-21: 15% of 4466 checklistsAug 22-31: 15% of 6562 checklistsSep 1-7: 16% of 4543 checklistsSep 8-14: 16% of 4652 checklistsSep 15-21: 15% of 4186 checklistsSep 22-30: 15% of 5301 checklistsOct 1-7: 15% of 3248 checklistsOct 8-14: 16% of 3010 checklistsOct 15-21: 17% of 2624 checklistsOct 22-31: 16% of 3170 checklistsNov 1-7: 16% of 2110 checklistsNov 8-14: 18% of 2153 checklistsNov 15-21: 19% of 1971 checklistsNov 22-30: 22% of 2136 checklistsDec 1-7: 24% of 1646 checklistsDec 8-14: 23% of 1609 checklistsDec 15-21: 26% of 1954 checklistsDec 22-31: 28% of 2392 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 Wyoming 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.

Embed this map on your site

Where in Wyoming

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Crook CountyBest late January · 40 checklists that week, 3,915 in all89%
  2. Weston CountyBest early January · 29 checklists that week, 2,297 in all63%
  3. Sublette CountyBest the second week of February · 42 checklists that week, 6,738 in all62%
  4. Sheridan CountyBest late December · 125 checklists that week, 6,459 in all61%
  5. Campbell CountyBest late August · 119 checklists that week, 2,801 in all60%
  6. Lincoln CountyBest mid December · 14 checklists that week, 3,169 in all55%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Camplex ParkCampbell County, best late August · 51 checklists that week, 659 in all95%
  2. Town of Lander ParkFremont County, best early September · 26 checklists that week, 894 in all83%
  3. Mountain View CemetaryFremont County, best early January · 27 checklists that week, 158 in all79%
  4. Devils Tower National MonumentCrook County, best mid October · 20 checklists that week, 954 in all77%

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

Best time of day

In Wyoming, the Black-capped Chickadee is most often listed on checklists started between 7 and 9 am (21% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%12 am: too few checklists (59) to judge1 am: too few checklists (76) to judge2 am: too few checklists (86) to judge3 am: too few checklists (79) to judge4 am: too few checklists (326) to judge5 am: too few checklists (2271) to judge6 am: 19% of 8808 checklists7 am: 21% of 18458 checklists8 am: 21% of 22143 checklists9 am: 17% of 21499 checklists10 am: 14% of 19425 checklists11 am: 14% of 16017 checklists12 pm: 15% of 13868 checklists1 pm: 14% of 12984 checklists2 pm: 14% of 12605 checklists3 pm: 15% of 11821 checklists4 pm: 14% of 10571 checklists5 pm: 13% of 8746 checklists6 pm: 12% of 6707 checklists7 pm: 9.1% of 4890 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (2323) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (554) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (134) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (59) 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
January29%26%27%25%
February27%26%29%26%
March26%23%22%18%
April17%16%16%15%
May17%17%15%14%
June10%9.0%7.8%8.5%
July8.0%9.9%11%12%
August12%12%15%15%
September16%16%15%15%
October15%16%17%16%
November16%18%19%22%
December24%23%26%28%

Neighboring states

  • Colorado: year-round, peaks late November
  • Utah: year-round, peaks the second week of December
  • Montana: year-round, peaks mid December
  • Idaho: year-round, peaks early December

Common questions

When do Black-capped Chickadees arrive in Wyoming?
Black-capped Chickadees are in Wyoming all year, but most are here in winter: numbers build from mid November, peak in late December (28% of checklists), and fall back by late March. In the quietest week (late June) they are still on about 8.1% of checklists.
When do Black-capped Chickadees leave Wyoming?
Black-capped Chickadees never fully leave Wyoming: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by late March, but some are still reported in every week, about 8.1% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Black-capped Chickadee in Wyoming?
The Black-capped Chickadee is reported most often in late December, on about 28% of Wyoming checklists.
Where in Wyoming are Black-capped Chickadees seen most often?
By county, Crook County, Weston County, and Sublette County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Black-capped Chickadee (counties with at least 200 checklists).