WhenToBird

Chlidonias niger · Laridae

When Do Black Terns Arrive in Georgia?

Adult Black Tern
Photo: rober025, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Black Terns mostly pass through Georgia: they arrive in early August, peak in late August (1.2% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of September.

When to look

First arrivalsAug 1-7early August
Common byAug 1-7early August
PeakAug 22-31late August
Most gone bySep 8-14the second week of September

Best: late August. First arrivals early August; most are gone by the second week of September. Peak: on about 1.2% of Georgia checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marnot usually seen
  4. Aprnot usually seen
  5. Maynot usually seen
  6. Junnot usually seen
  7. Juluncommon
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octrare
  11. Novnot usually seen
  12. Decnot usually seen

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

0%0.5%1%1.5%Jan 1-7: 0% of 22238 checklistsJan 8-14: 0% of 16390 checklistsJan 15-21: 0% of 16779 checklistsJan 22-31: 0% of 22964 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0% of 16870 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0% of 19486 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0% of 28540 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0% of 17005 checklistsMar 1-7: 0% of 15920 checklistsMar 8-14: 0% of 16274 checklistsMar 15-21: 0% of 16432 checklistsMar 22-31: 0% of 25318 checklistsApr 1-7: 0% of 19292 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.1% of 19742 checklistsApr 15-21: 0% of 21498 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.1% of 29736 checklistsMay 1-7: 0% of 20858 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.1% of 20346 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.1% of 15859 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.1% of 19867 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.1% of 13467 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.1% of 12812 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.1% of 11379 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.1% of 14121 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.1% of 11176 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.1% of 10695 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.3% of 10655 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.4% of 15106 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.6% of 10650 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.8% of 10247 checklistsAug 15-21: 1.3% of 10371 checklistsAug 22-31: 1.1% of 15203 checklistsSep 1-7: 1.3% of 13007 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.6% of 12541 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.3% of 12943 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.1% of 17655 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.1% of 14646 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.1% of 15836 checklistsOct 15-21: 0% of 13124 checklistsOct 22-31: 0% of 15859 checklistsNov 1-7: 0% of 11711 checklistsNov 8-14: 0% of 11587 checklistsNov 15-21: 0% of 12025 checklistsNov 22-30: 0% of 16431 checklistsDec 1-7: 0% of 11256 checklistsDec 8-14: 0% of 11967 checklistsDec 15-21: 0% of 15618 checklistsDec 22-31: 0% of 22453 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 Georgia 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 Georgia

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Hart CountyBest the second week of September · 31 checklists that week, 1,457 in all36%
  2. Troup CountyBest late August · 74 checklists that week, 3,539 in all30%
  3. Dooly CountyBest late August · 77 checklists that week, 1,911 in all18%
  4. Crisp CountyBest the second week of September · 10 checklists that week, 524 in all13%
  5. Elbert CountyBest late August · 14 checklists that week, 614 in all8.8%
  6. Clay CountyBest early September · 27 checklists that week, 775 in all6.8%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Hardley Creek Recreation AreaTroup County, best late August · 25 checklists that week, 947 in all65%
  2. BeachChatham County, best the second week of August · 37 checklists that week, 2,031 in all37%
  3. Onslow IslandChatham County, best late August · 20 checklists that week, 546 in all33%
  4. Bloody MarshGlynn County, best early August · 42 checklists that week, 1,916 in all16%

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

Best time of day

In Georgia, the Black Tern is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 pm (0.2% of those checklists).

0%0.5%12 am: too few checklists (334) to judge1 am: too few checklists (277) to judge2 am: too few checklists (264) to judge3 am: too few checklists (282) to judge4 am: too few checklists (463) to judge5 am: too few checklists (1513) to judge6 am: 0.1% of 16790 checklists7 am: 0.1% of 73569 checklists8 am: 0.1% of 104956 checklists9 am: 0.1% of 96241 checklists10 am: 0.1% of 81903 checklists11 am: 0.1% of 66236 checklists12 pm: 0.1% of 56159 checklists1 pm: 0.1% of 48260 checklists2 pm: 0.1% of 46435 checklists3 pm: 0.1% of 46015 checklists4 pm: 0.1% of 47438 checklists5 pm: 0.2% of 38866 checklists6 pm: 0.2% of 26032 checklists7 pm: 0.2% of 16610 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (5490) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (995) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (517) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (310) 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%0%0%0%
February0%0%0%0%
March0%0%0%0%
April0%0.1%0%0.1%
May0%0.1%0.1%0.1%
June0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
July0.1%0.1%0.3%0.4%
August0.6%0.8%1.3%1.1%
September1.3%0.6%0.3%0.1%
October0.1%0.1%0%0%
November0%0%0%0%
December0%0%0%0%

Neighboring states

  • South Carolina: arrives the second week of July, 3 weeks earlier than Georgia
  • Alabama: arrives mid June, 6 weeks earlier than Georgia
  • Tennessee: arrives the second week of August, 1 week later than Georgia
  • North Carolina: arrives mid July, 2 weeks earlier than Georgia

Common questions

When do Black Terns arrive in Georgia?
Black Terns mostly pass through Georgia: they arrive in early August, peak in late August (1.2% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of September.
When do Black Terns leave Georgia?
Most Black Terns have left Georgia by the second week of September, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Black Tern in Georgia?
The Black Tern is reported most often in late August, on about 1.2% of Georgia checklists.
Where in Georgia are Black Terns seen most often?
By county, Hart County, Troup County, and Dooly County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Black Tern (counties with at least 200 checklists).