WhenToBird

Sayornis nigricans · Tyrannidae

When Do Black Phoebes Arrive in New Mexico?

Adult Black Phoebe
Photo: Esteban Poveda, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

The Black Phoebe is in New Mexico all year. It turns up on about 14% of checklists at its peak (early April) and on 5.6% in its quietest week (early February).

When to look

PresentAll year
Peak weekApr 1-7early April
Quietest weekFeb 1-7early February

Best: early April. Here all year. Peak: on about 14% of New Mexico checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novcommon
  12. Deccommon

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

0%5%10%15%Jan 1-7: 6.7% of 11827 checklistsJan 8-14: 6.4% of 9370 checklistsJan 15-21: 6.6% of 9561 checklistsJan 22-31: 5.8% of 12707 checklistsFeb 1-7: 5.7% of 9365 checklistsFeb 8-14: 5.2% of 10141 checklistsFeb 15-21: 5.8% of 12431 checklistsFeb 22-28: 7.5% of 9159 checklistsMar 1-7: 8.7% of 9348 checklistsMar 8-14: 10% of 9704 checklistsMar 15-21: 12% of 9896 checklistsMar 22-31: 14% of 14679 checklistsApr 1-7: 14% of 11145 checklistsApr 8-14: 13% of 11939 checklistsApr 15-21: 13% of 12885 checklistsApr 22-30: 12% of 17935 checklistsMay 1-7: 10% of 15202 checklistsMay 8-14: 10% of 16604 checklistsMay 15-21: 10% of 12720 checklistsMay 22-31: 8.8% of 16699 checklistsJun 1-7: 8.0% of 9889 checklistsJun 8-14: 8.2% of 9322 checklistsJun 15-21: 8.4% of 8341 checklistsJun 22-30: 8.3% of 10562 checklistsJul 1-7: 8.6% of 9036 checklistsJul 8-14: 7.8% of 8461 checklistsJul 15-21: 8.7% of 8585 checklistsJul 22-31: 8.4% of 11800 checklistsAug 1-7: 8.3% of 8289 checklistsAug 8-14: 8.4% of 8882 checklistsAug 15-21: 9.2% of 9136 checklistsAug 22-31: 11% of 12662 checklistsSep 1-7: 12% of 9936 checklistsSep 8-14: 12% of 9581 checklistsSep 15-21: 11% of 9355 checklistsSep 22-30: 10% of 12402 checklistsOct 1-7: 7.4% of 9467 checklistsOct 8-14: 7.5% of 10279 checklistsOct 15-21: 7.8% of 8990 checklistsOct 22-31: 8.4% of 11986 checklistsNov 1-7: 8.4% of 8461 checklistsNov 8-14: 8.0% of 8801 checklistsNov 15-21: 7.4% of 8616 checklistsNov 22-30: 7.1% of 11088 checklistsDec 1-7: 7.8% of 8444 checklistsDec 8-14: 7.3% of 8575 checklistsDec 15-21: 6.7% of 10958 checklistsDec 22-31: 7.5% of 14523 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 New Mexico 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 New Mexico

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Sierra CountyBest mid March · 294 checklists that week, 13,458 in all37%
  2. Socorro CountyBest early April · 685 checklists that week, 33,508 in all31%
  3. Luna CountyBest the second week of October · 67 checklists that week, 3,814 in all24%
  4. Grant CountyBest late March · 529 checklists that week, 16,662 in all23%
  5. De Baca CountyBest late July · 15 checklists that week, 2,203 in all23%
  6. Sandoval CountyBest late March · 864 checklists that week, 32,643 in all22%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Percha Dam State ParkSierra County, best the second week of December · 44 checklists that week, 1,881 in all88%
  2. City of Albuquerque 1Bernalillo County, best the second week of April · 26 checklists that week, 1,806 in all88%
  3. Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge (southwest)Socorro County, best late May · 31 checklists that week, 2,113 in all85%
  4. Bosque (Los Padillas)Bernalillo County, best the second week of April · 29 checklists that week, 1,047 in all84%
  5. Leasburg Dam State ParkDona Ana County, best late December · 48 checklists that week, 1,017 in all84%
  6. La Llorona ParkDona Ana County, best early December · 20 checklists that week, 1,183 in all84%

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

Best time of day

In New Mexico, the Black Phoebe is most often listed on checklists started between 7 and 9 am (11% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%12 am: too few checklists (186) to judge1 am: too few checklists (180) to judge2 am: too few checklists (172) to judge3 am: too few checklists (183) to judge4 am: too few checklists (527) to judge5 am: too few checklists (4013) to judge6 am: 11% of 29677 checklists7 am: 10% of 71785 checklists8 am: 12% of 79208 checklists9 am: 10% of 61605 checklists10 am: 8.8% of 49588 checklists11 am: 7.6% of 38079 checklists12 pm: 7.4% of 31089 checklists1 pm: 7.2% of 27524 checklists2 pm: 6.9% of 26644 checklists3 pm: 6.8% of 26849 checklists4 pm: 6.6% of 25156 checklists5 pm: 6.8% of 19061 checklists6 pm: 7.3% of 15112 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (9040) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (2738) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (736) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (384) 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
January6.7%6.4%6.6%5.8%
February5.7%5.2%5.8%7.5%
March8.7%10%12%14%
April14%13%13%12%
May10%10%10%8.8%
June8.0%8.2%8.4%8.3%
July8.6%7.8%8.7%8.4%
August8.3%8.4%9.2%11%
September12%12%11%10%
October7.4%7.5%7.8%8.4%
November8.4%8.0%7.4%7.1%
December7.8%7.3%6.7%7.5%

Neighboring states

  • Arizona: all year, most in winter, peaks mid November
  • Colorado: summer visitor, peaks mid April
  • Utah: summer visitor, peaks mid April
  • Texas: winter visitor, peaks the second week of November

Common questions

When do Black Phoebes arrive in New Mexico?
The Black Phoebe is in New Mexico all year. It turns up on about 14% of checklists at its peak (early April) and on 5.6% in its quietest week (early February).
When do Black Phoebes leave New Mexico?
The Black Phoebe does not leave New Mexico: it is reported all year, from 5.6% of checklists in early February to 14% in early April.
When is the best time to see a Black Phoebe in New Mexico?
The Black Phoebe is reported most often in early April, on about 14% of New Mexico checklists.
Where in New Mexico are Black Phoebes seen most often?
By county, Sierra County, Socorro County, and Luna County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Black Phoebe (counties with at least 200 checklists).