WhenToBird

Polioptila caerulea · Polioptilidae

When Do Blue-gray Gnatcatchers Arrive in Texas?

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

Blue-gray Gnatcatchers are in Texas all year, but most are here in fall: numbers build from mid August, peak in the second week of September (24% of checklists), and fall back by early October. In the quietest week (the second week of July) they are still on about 6.8% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildAug 15-21mid August
PeakSep 8-14the second week of September
Fall back byOct 1-7early October
FewestJul 8-14the second week of July

Best: the second week of September. Here all year; numbers build from mid August and fall back by early October. Peak: on about 24% of Texas checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Juluncommon
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novcommon
  12. Deccommon

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

0%10%20%30%Jan 1-7: 11% of 66038 checklistsJan 8-14: 11% of 52445 checklistsJan 15-21: 10% of 52985 checklistsJan 22-31: 9.8% of 71020 checklistsFeb 1-7: 9.6% of 52306 checklistsFeb 8-14: 8.6% of 55887 checklistsFeb 15-21: 6.4% of 69016 checklistsFeb 22-28: 7.7% of 52998 checklistsMar 1-7: 6.7% of 50836 checklistsMar 8-14: 9.9% of 51749 checklistsMar 15-21: 14% of 53731 checklistsMar 22-31: 19% of 82049 checklistsApr 1-7: 18% of 65854 checklistsApr 8-14: 15% of 78434 checklistsApr 15-21: 11% of 92302 checklistsApr 22-30: 9.0% of 122878 checklistsMay 1-7: 9.4% of 74592 checklistsMay 8-14: 9.6% of 61008 checklistsMay 15-21: 9.7% of 43365 checklistsMay 22-31: 9.3% of 52736 checklistsJun 1-7: 9.0% of 31643 checklistsJun 8-14: 8.5% of 30131 checklistsJun 15-21: 8.2% of 26802 checklistsJun 22-30: 7.9% of 32822 checklistsJul 1-7: 7.2% of 27213 checklistsJul 8-14: 6.6% of 24555 checklistsJul 15-21: 6.7% of 24146 checklistsJul 22-31: 7.9% of 34536 checklistsAug 1-7: 9.7% of 25764 checklistsAug 8-14: 12% of 26347 checklistsAug 15-21: 15% of 28431 checklistsAug 22-31: 19% of 42838 checklistsSep 1-7: 23% of 35070 checklistsSep 8-14: 26% of 33893 checklistsSep 15-21: 25% of 32572 checklistsSep 22-30: 22% of 43771 checklistsOct 1-7: 17% of 34143 checklistsOct 8-14: 13% of 37563 checklistsOct 15-21: 11% of 36263 checklistsOct 22-31: 11% of 49170 checklistsNov 1-7: 12% of 43301 checklistsNov 8-14: 13% of 48744 checklistsNov 15-21: 12% of 42213 checklistsNov 22-30: 11% of 54455 checklistsDec 1-7: 12% of 40166 checklistsDec 8-14: 12% of 41035 checklistsDec 15-21: 12% of 46983 checklistsDec 22-31: 11% of 73015 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 Texas 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 Texas

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Rains CountyBest early September · 19 checklists that week, 1,265 in all78%
  2. Leon CountyBest early September · 52 checklists that week, 2,456 in all73%
  3. San Augustine CountyBest mid September · 21 checklists that week, 745 in all73%
  4. Sabine CountyBest late September · 25 checklists that week, 1,870 in all72%
  5. Zapata CountyBest mid September · 13 checklists that week, 3,836 in all69%
  6. Starr CountyBest the second week of September · 19 checklists that week, 14,693 in all65%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. St. Edwards GreenbeltTravis County, best the second week of April · 41 checklists that week, 693 in all93%
  2. Sabine WoodsJefferson County, best late September · 98 checklists that week, 6,088 in all93%
  3. University of Texas at Austin Brackenridge Field LaboratoryTravis County, best late August · 24 checklists that week, 948 in all89%
  4. Bentsen - Rio Grande Valley State Park (south)Hidalgo County, best late September · 102 checklists that week, 2,096 in all88%
  5. Kerr Wildlife Management Area (southwest)Kerr County, best the second week of April · 37 checklists that week, 119 in all87%

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

Best time of day

In Texas, the Blue-gray Gnatcatcher is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (18% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%20%12 am: too few checklists (898) to judge1 am: too few checklists (756) to judge2 am: too few checklists (663) to judge3 am: too few checklists (741) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1537) to judge5 am: too few checklists (6113) to judge6 am: 17% of 74687 checklists7 am: 18% of 285131 checklists8 am: 16% of 329960 checklists9 am: 13% of 267889 checklists10 am: 11% of 218205 checklists11 am: 10% of 178879 checklists12 pm: 10% of 153722 checklists1 pm: 10% of 144662 checklists2 pm: 10% of 138578 checklists3 pm: 9.4% of 136878 checklists4 pm: 8.1% of 137550 checklists5 pm: 7.1% of 113599 checklists6 pm: 7.1% of 81743 checklists7 pm: 4.6% of 53396 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (17221) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (4048) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1965) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (990) 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
January11%11%10%9.8%
February9.6%8.6%6.4%7.7%
March6.7%9.9%14%19%
April18%15%11%9.0%
May9.4%9.6%9.7%9.3%
June9.0%8.5%8.2%7.9%
July7.2%6.6%6.7%7.9%
August9.7%12%15%19%
September23%26%25%22%
October17%13%11%11%
November12%13%12%11%
December12%12%12%11%

Neighboring states

  • Louisiana: arrives mid August, in the same week than Texas
  • Oklahoma: arrives mid March, 20 weeks earlier than Texas
  • Arkansas: arrives mid March, 20 weeks earlier than Texas
  • Mississippi: arrives late March, 19 weeks earlier than Texas

Common questions

When do Blue-gray Gnatcatchers arrive in Texas?
Blue-gray Gnatcatchers are in Texas all year, but most are here in fall: numbers build from mid August, peak in the second week of September (24% of checklists), and fall back by early October. In the quietest week (the second week of July) they are still on about 6.8% of checklists.
When do Blue-gray Gnatcatchers leave Texas?
Blue-gray Gnatcatchers never fully leave Texas: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by early October, but some are still reported in every week, about 6.8% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Blue-gray Gnatcatcher in Texas?
The Blue-gray Gnatcatcher is reported most often in the second week of September, on about 24% of Texas checklists.
Where in Texas are Blue-gray Gnatcatchers seen most often?
By county, Rains County, Leon County, and San Augustine County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Blue-gray Gnatcatcher (counties with at least 200 checklists).