WhenToBird

Passerina caerulea · Cardinalidae

When Do Blue Grosbeaks Arrive in Oklahoma?

Adult male Blue Grosbeak
Photo: John Rosford, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Blue Grosbeaks reach Oklahoma in mid April, are common by late April, peak in the second week of June (9.0% of checklists), and most are gone by late August.

When to look

First arrivalsApr 15-21mid April
Common byApr 22-30late April
PeakJun 8-14the second week of June
Most gone byAug 22-31late August

Best: the second week of June. First arrivals mid April; most are gone by late August. Peak: on about 9.0% of Oklahoma checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marnot usually seen
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octrare
  11. Novnot usually seen
  12. Decnot usually seen

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

0%5%10%Jan 1-7: 0% of 6087 checklistsJan 8-14: 0% of 4350 checklistsJan 15-21: 0% of 4381 checklistsJan 22-31: 0% of 6165 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0% of 4259 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0% of 4589 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0% of 7001 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0% of 4482 checklistsMar 1-7: 0% of 4724 checklistsMar 8-14: 0% of 4571 checklistsMar 15-21: 0% of 4393 checklistsMar 22-31: 0% of 7544 checklistsApr 1-7: 0% of 5967 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.1% of 6543 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.7% of 7366 checklistsApr 22-30: 3.5% of 10618 checklistsMay 1-7: 7.7% of 8835 checklistsMay 8-14: 8.7% of 8247 checklistsMay 15-21: 9.3% of 6081 checklistsMay 22-31: 8.6% of 7283 checklistsJun 1-7: 9.1% of 4256 checklistsJun 8-14: 9.5% of 3774 checklistsJun 15-21: 8.2% of 3541 checklistsJun 22-30: 8.8% of 4159 checklistsJul 1-7: 7.6% of 3209 checklistsJul 8-14: 8.1% of 2916 checklistsJul 15-21: 6.6% of 2861 checklistsJul 22-31: 8.2% of 4146 checklistsAug 1-7: 7.7% of 3043 checklistsAug 8-14: 5.5% of 2839 checklistsAug 15-21: 4.4% of 3014 checklistsAug 22-31: 4.1% of 4759 checklistsSep 1-7: 3.8% of 3861 checklistsSep 8-14: 2.8% of 3748 checklistsSep 15-21: 2.0% of 3569 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.9% of 4830 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.5% of 3809 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.1% of 4142 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.1% of 3705 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.1% of 4738 checklistsNov 1-7: 0% of 3823 checklistsNov 8-14: 0% of 3849 checklistsNov 15-21: 0% of 3722 checklistsNov 22-30: 0% of 4795 checklistsDec 1-7: 0% of 3324 checklistsDec 8-14: 0% of 3574 checklistsDec 15-21: 0% of 3884 checklistsDec 22-31: 0% of 5774 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 Oklahoma 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 Oklahoma

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Adair CountyBest early August · 18 checklists that week, 616 in all66%
  2. Ellis CountyBest late June · 11 checklists that week, 357 in all50%
  3. Major CountyBest early June · 22 checklists that week, 631 in all40%
  4. Greer CountyBest the second week of June · 18 checklists that week, 390 in all37%
  5. Washita CountyBest the second week of May · 20 checklists that week, 404 in all36%
  6. Cimarron CountyBest mid May · 249 checklists that week, 5,146 in all35%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Lake Carl EtlingCimarron County, best early September · 27 checklists that week, 413 in all70%
  2. Carl Etling Public Fishing AreaCimarron County, best mid May · 29 checklists that week, 497 in all59%
  3. CLO Lands (Kenton)Cimarron County, best mid May · 21 checklists that week, 329 in all56%
  4. Upper Bayou Site 10 ReservoirCarter County, best the second week of June · 37 checklists that week, 1,672 in all36%

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

Best time of day

In Oklahoma, the Blue Grosbeak is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (6.1% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%12 am: too few checklists (91) to judge1 am: too few checklists (65) to judge2 am: too few checklists (73) to judge3 am: too few checklists (73) to judge4 am: too few checklists (100) to judge5 am: too few checklists (647) to judge6 am: 11% of 8353 checklists7 am: 4.5% of 24509 checklists8 am: 3.4% of 27848 checklists9 am: 2.8% of 25316 checklists10 am: 2.2% of 21161 checklists11 am: 1.9% of 18730 checklists12 pm: 1.6% of 16097 checklists1 pm: 1.6% of 14028 checklists2 pm: 1.7% of 13599 checklists3 pm: 1.4% of 14228 checklists4 pm: 1.3% of 14597 checklists5 pm: 1.8% of 12125 checklists6 pm: 2.9% of 9337 checklists7 pm: 4.2% of 6944 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (2403) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (459) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (226) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (141) 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%0.7%3.5%
May7.7%8.7%9.3%8.6%
June9.1%9.5%8.2%8.8%
July7.6%8.1%6.6%8.2%
August7.7%5.5%4.4%4.1%
September3.8%2.8%2.0%0.9%
October0.5%0.1%0.1%0.1%
November0%0%0%0%
December0%0%0%0%

Neighboring states

  • Kansas: arrives late April, 1 week later than Oklahoma
  • Arkansas: arrives the second week of April, 1 week earlier than Oklahoma
  • Missouri: arrives mid April, in the same week than Oklahoma
  • Nebraska: arrives the second week of May, 3 weeks later than Oklahoma

Common questions

When do Blue Grosbeaks arrive in Oklahoma?
Blue Grosbeaks reach Oklahoma in mid April, are common by late April, peak in the second week of June (9.0% of checklists), and most are gone by late August.
When do Blue Grosbeaks leave Oklahoma?
Most Blue Grosbeaks have left Oklahoma by late August, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until late September.
When is the best time to see a Blue Grosbeak in Oklahoma?
The Blue Grosbeak is reported most often in the second week of June, on about 9.0% of Oklahoma checklists.
Where in Oklahoma are Blue Grosbeaks seen most often?
By county, Adair County, Ellis County, and Major County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Blue Grosbeak (counties with at least 200 checklists).