WhenToBird

Chlidonias niger · Laridae

When Do Black Terns Arrive in Nevada?

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

Black Terns arrive in Nevada in the second week of July, peak in early August (1.1% of checklists), and most are gone by early September.

When to look

First arrivalsJul 8-14the second week of July
Common byJul 8-14the second week of July
PeakAug 1-7early August
Most gone bySep 1-7early September

Best: early August. First arrivals the second week of July; most are gone by early September. Peak: on about 1.1% of Nevada checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marnot usually seen
  4. Aprrare
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Junrare
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octnot usually seen
  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 5121 checklistsJan 8-14: 0% of 3908 checklistsJan 15-21: 0% of 4000 checklistsJan 22-31: 0% of 4991 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0% of 3377 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0% of 3747 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0% of 4852 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0% of 3712 checklistsMar 1-7: 0% of 3745 checklistsMar 8-14: 0% of 3763 checklistsMar 15-21: 0% of 4188 checklistsMar 22-31: 0% of 6027 checklistsApr 1-7: 0% of 4679 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.1% of 4609 checklistsApr 15-21: 0% of 4709 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.1% of 6984 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.4% of 5702 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.7% of 5928 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.2% of 5353 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.2% of 7352 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.1% of 4360 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.2% of 4183 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.1% of 3751 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.1% of 4126 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.2% of 3231 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.3% of 3024 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.7% of 2967 checklistsJul 22-31: 1.2% of 4212 checklistsAug 1-7: 1.0% of 2828 checklistsAug 8-14: 1.2% of 3036 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.5% of 3076 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.6% of 4345 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.5% of 3369 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.1% of 3728 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.1% of 3535 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.1% of 5028 checklistsOct 1-7: 0% of 3976 checklistsOct 8-14: 0% of 3781 checklistsOct 15-21: 0% of 3577 checklistsOct 22-31: 0% of 4986 checklistsNov 1-7: 0% of 3592 checklistsNov 8-14: 0% of 3685 checklistsNov 15-21: 0% of 3399 checklistsNov 22-30: 0% of 4544 checklistsDec 1-7: 0% of 3162 checklistsDec 8-14: 0% of 3191 checklistsDec 15-21: 0% of 3615 checklistsDec 22-31: 0% of 5101 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 Nevada 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 Nevada

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Churchill CountyBest late July · 71 checklists that week, 3,104 in all9.7%
  2. Lincoln CountyBest the second week of August · 36 checklists that week, 3,842 in all2.9%
  3. Lyon CountyBest mid August · 60 checklists that week, 3,229 in all2.9%
  4. Clark CountyBest early August · 910 checklists that week, 80,458 in all1.8%
  5. Elko CountyBest early August · 306 checklists that week, 8,844 in all1.2%
  6. Washoe CountyBest the second week of May · 1623 checklists that week, 53,497 in all0.9%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Swan LakeWashoe County, best the second week of May · 38 checklists that week, 569 in all17%
  2. South Fork ReservoirElko County, best mid July · 20 checklists that week, 215 in all15%
  3. Swan Lake/Lemmon ValleyWashoe County, best the second week of May · 32 checklists that week, 1,492 in all12%
  4. Bird Viewing PreserveClark County, best early August · 128 checklists that week, 9,268 in all9.2%
  5. Washoe Lake State ParkWashoe County, best the second week of August · 32 checklists that week, 1,095 in all5.2%
  6. Robert B. Griffith Water ProjectClark County, best the second week of June · 26 checklists that week, 2,177 in all4.5%

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

Best time of day

In Nevada, the Black Tern is most often listed on checklists started between 5 and 7 am (0.2% of those checklists).

0%0.5%12 am: too few checklists (114) to judge1 am: too few checklists (99) to judge2 am: too few checklists (71) to judge3 am: too few checklists (108) to judge4 am: too few checklists (459) to judge5 am: 0.3% of 4313 checklists6 am: 0.2% of 17070 checklists7 am: 0.2% of 27389 checklists8 am: 0.1% of 24858 checklists9 am: 0.1% of 22012 checklists10 am: 0.2% of 19284 checklists11 am: 0.1% of 15592 checklists12 pm: 0.1% of 12432 checklists1 pm: 0.1% of 11386 checklists2 pm: 0.1% of 11262 checklists3 pm: 0.1% of 10721 checklists4 pm: 0.1% of 9090 checklists5 pm: 0.2% of 6397 checklists6 pm: 0.3% of 5012 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (3026) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (905) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (271) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (164) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (120) 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%
May0.4%0.7%0.2%0.2%
June0.1%0.2%0.1%0.1%
July0.2%0.3%0.7%1.2%
August1.0%1.2%0.5%0.6%
September0.5%0.1%0.1%0.1%
October0%0%0%0%
November0%0%0%0%
December0%0%0%0%

Neighboring states

  • Oregon: arrives early May, 9 weeks earlier than Nevada
  • Colorado: arrives late July, 2 weeks later than Nevada
  • South Dakota: arrives early May, 9 weeks earlier than Nevada
  • Nebraska: arrives early May, 9 weeks earlier than Nevada

Common questions

When do Black Terns arrive in Nevada?
Black Terns arrive in Nevada in the second week of July, peak in early August (1.1% of checklists), and most are gone by early September.
When do Black Terns leave Nevada?
Most Black Terns have left Nevada by early September, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Black Tern in Nevada?
The Black Tern is reported most often in early August, on about 1.1% of Nevada checklists.
Where in Nevada are Black Terns seen most often?
By county, Churchill County, Lincoln County, and Lyon County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Black Tern (counties with at least 200 checklists).