WhenToBird

Polioptila caerulea · Polioptilidae

When Do Blue-gray Gnatcatchers Arrive in North Carolina?

Adult Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Photo: Laura Clark, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Blue-gray Gnatcatchers reach North Carolina in the second week of March, are common by mid March, peak in mid April (39% of checklists), and most are gone by mid September.

When to look

First arrivalsMar 8-14the second week of March
Common byMar 15-21mid March
PeakApr 15-21mid April
Most gone bySep 15-21mid September

Best: mid April. First arrivals the second week of March; most are gone by mid September. Peak: on about 39% of North Carolina checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octrare
  11. Novnot usually seen
  12. Decnot usually seen

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

0%20%40%60%Jan 1-7: 0.4% of 30085 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.3% of 22728 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.2% of 24292 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.2% of 34122 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.1% of 26352 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.1% of 29663 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.1% of 41515 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.2% of 24318 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.4% of 23408 checklistsMar 8-14: 1.7% of 22658 checklistsMar 15-21: 6.4% of 22784 checklistsMar 22-31: 20% of 36034 checklistsApr 1-7: 35% of 28131 checklistsApr 8-14: 40% of 29190 checklistsApr 15-21: 40% of 32847 checklistsApr 22-30: 38% of 47966 checklistsMay 1-7: 35% of 37076 checklistsMay 8-14: 31% of 36228 checklistsMay 15-21: 30% of 30378 checklistsMay 22-31: 26% of 40237 checklistsJun 1-7: 24% of 27551 checklistsJun 8-14: 24% of 26473 checklistsJun 15-21: 22% of 22789 checklistsJun 22-30: 22% of 27615 checklistsJul 1-7: 20% of 20022 checklistsJul 8-14: 20% of 19315 checklistsJul 15-21: 18% of 18934 checklistsJul 22-31: 18% of 25600 checklistsAug 1-7: 18% of 17987 checklistsAug 8-14: 18% of 17307 checklistsAug 15-21: 19% of 17080 checklistsAug 22-31: 21% of 25844 checklistsSep 1-7: 21% of 20818 checklistsSep 8-14: 18% of 20070 checklistsSep 15-21: 11% of 21984 checklistsSep 22-30: 6.1% of 26979 checklistsOct 1-7: 2.7% of 22605 checklistsOct 8-14: 1.6% of 22677 checklistsOct 15-21: 1.6% of 21407 checklistsOct 22-31: 1.2% of 25927 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.8% of 18830 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.5% of 18418 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.6% of 19101 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.7% of 25709 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.6% of 18856 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.7% of 18745 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.5% of 22478 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.5% of 34796 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 North Carolina 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 North Carolina

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Bladen CountyBest late August · 61 checklists that week, 3,758 in all75%
  2. Bertie CountyBest the second week of April · 22 checklists that week, 1,408 in all71%
  3. Anson CountyBest the second week of April · 36 checklists that week, 2,224 in all70%
  4. Chatham CountyBest the second week of April · 1112 checklists that week, 33,471 in all67%
  5. Caswell CountyBest mid April · 63 checklists that week, 2,804 in all67%
  6. Granville CountyBest the second week of April · 118 checklists that week, 4,892 in all65%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Eno River Diabase Sill Plant Conservation PreserveDurham County, best late April · 23 checklists that week, 290 in all98%
  2. City of Raleigh Greenway - Neuse River GreenwayWake County, best late March · 27 checklists that week, 543 in all97%
  3. Town of Garner Open Space - White Deer ParkWake County, best the second week of May · 27 checklists that week, 524 in all96%

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

Best time of day

In North Carolina, the Blue-gray Gnatcatcher is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (22% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%12 am: too few checklists (520) to judge1 am: too few checklists (489) to judge2 am: too few checklists (442) to judge3 am: too few checklists (544) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1621) to judge5 am: too few checklists (9671) to judge6 am: 29% of 50335 checklists7 am: 19% of 150152 checklists8 am: 17% of 182902 checklists9 am: 14% of 158933 checklists10 am: 12% of 128398 checklists11 am: 11% of 98671 checklists12 pm: 10% of 78640 checklists1 pm: 9.8% of 72510 checklists2 pm: 9.2% of 69179 checklists3 pm: 8.8% of 67669 checklists4 pm: 10% of 63964 checklists5 pm: 14% of 48520 checklists6 pm: 16% of 33196 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (19700) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (6160) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1943) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1119) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (651) 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
January0.4%0.3%0.2%0.2%
February0.1%0.1%0.1%0.2%
March0.4%1.7%6.4%20%
April35%40%40%38%
May35%31%30%26%
June24%24%22%22%
July20%20%18%18%
August18%18%19%21%
September21%18%11%6.1%
October2.7%1.6%1.6%1.2%
November0.8%0.5%0.6%0.7%
December0.6%0.7%0.5%0.5%

Neighboring states

  • South Carolina: arrives late February, 2 weeks earlier than North Carolina
  • Virginia: arrives mid March, 1 week later than North Carolina
  • West Virginia: arrives late March, 2 weeks later than North Carolina
  • District of Columbia: arrives late March, 2 weeks later than North Carolina

Common questions

When do Blue-gray Gnatcatchers arrive in North Carolina?
Blue-gray Gnatcatchers reach North Carolina in the second week of March, are common by mid March, peak in mid April (39% of checklists), and most are gone by mid September.
When do Blue-gray Gnatcatchers leave North Carolina?
Most Blue-gray Gnatcatchers have left North Carolina by mid September, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until early October.
When is the best time to see a Blue-gray Gnatcatcher in North Carolina?
The Blue-gray Gnatcatcher is reported most often in mid April, on about 39% of North Carolina checklists.
Where in North Carolina are Blue-gray Gnatcatchers seen most often?
By county, Bladen County, Bertie County, and Anson County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Blue-gray Gnatcatcher (counties with at least 200 checklists).