WhenToBird

Cyanocitta cristata · Corvidae

When Do Blue Jays Arrive in Florida?

Adult Blue Jay
Photo: Texas Bird Family, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

The Blue Jay is in Florida all year. It turns up on about 60% of checklists at its peak (early October) and on 30% in its quietest week (the second week of January).

When to look

PresentAll year
Peak weekOct 1-7early October
Quietest weekJan 8-14the second week of January

Best: early October. Here all year. Peak: on about 60% of Florida checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maycommon
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Deccommon

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

0%20%40%60%Jan 1-7: 29% of 74446 checklistsJan 8-14: 30% of 60074 checklistsJan 15-21: 31% of 62945 checklistsJan 22-31: 32% of 84954 checklistsFeb 1-7: 35% of 59204 checklistsFeb 8-14: 36% of 63259 checklistsFeb 15-21: 36% of 77150 checklistsFeb 22-28: 38% of 62850 checklistsMar 1-7: 37% of 58560 checklistsMar 8-14: 37% of 57756 checklistsMar 15-21: 38% of 54898 checklistsMar 22-31: 41% of 76702 checklistsApr 1-7: 42% of 55096 checklistsApr 8-14: 42% of 55892 checklistsApr 15-21: 43% of 59358 checklistsApr 22-30: 42% of 73124 checklistsMay 1-7: 43% of 47915 checklistsMay 8-14: 42% of 44114 checklistsMay 15-21: 42% of 31858 checklistsMay 22-31: 41% of 40723 checklistsJun 1-7: 39% of 31668 checklistsJun 8-14: 39% of 27802 checklistsJun 15-21: 40% of 26698 checklistsJun 22-30: 40% of 32346 checklistsJul 1-7: 42% of 23826 checklistsJul 8-14: 42% of 23071 checklistsJul 15-21: 41% of 22903 checklistsJul 22-31: 42% of 32952 checklistsAug 1-7: 41% of 25093 checklistsAug 8-14: 43% of 24888 checklistsAug 15-21: 44% of 26030 checklistsAug 22-31: 47% of 38612 checklistsSep 1-7: 50% of 31023 checklistsSep 8-14: 54% of 30022 checklistsSep 15-21: 57% of 31611 checklistsSep 22-30: 60% of 42108 checklistsOct 1-7: 60% of 36219 checklistsOct 8-14: 60% of 43113 checklistsOct 15-21: 59% of 40987 checklistsOct 22-31: 55% of 53457 checklistsNov 1-7: 49% of 38587 checklistsNov 8-14: 43% of 39208 checklistsNov 15-21: 39% of 39729 checklistsNov 22-30: 36% of 54965 checklistsDec 1-7: 33% of 42070 checklistsDec 8-14: 32% of 43424 checklistsDec 15-21: 31% of 50581 checklistsDec 22-31: 31% of 82405 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 Florida 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.

Embed this map on your site

Where in Florida

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Washington CountyBest late September · 43 checklists that week, 1,773 in all90%
  2. Broward CountyBest mid September · 915 checklists that week, 57,530 in all83%
  3. Santa Rosa CountyBest mid September · 265 checklists that week, 15,001 in all82%
  4. Jackson CountyBest the second week of October · 24 checklists that week, 1,959 in all79%
  5. Charlotte CountyBest late September · 729 checklists that week, 40,485 in all73%
  6. Palm Beach CountyBest early October · 2028 checklists that week, 118,595 in all72%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Oscar Scherer State ParkSarasota County, best late September · 29 checklists that week, 2,601 in all100%
  2. West LakeMiami-Dade County, best late April · 25 checklists that week, 836 in all100%
  3. Euclid Lake ParkPinellas County, best late March · 25 checklists that week, 460 in all100%
  4. Halpatiokee Regional Park Conservation AreaMartin County, best the second week of September · 20 checklists that week, 482 in all100%
  5. Datsko ParkPinellas County, best mid September · 22 checklists that week, 136 in all100%
  6. Walsingham ReservoirPinellas County, best early September · 26 checklists that week, 1,021 in all100%

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

Best time of day

In Florida, the Blue Jay is most often listed on checklists started between 7 and 9 am (55% of those checklists).

0%20%40%60%12 am: too few checklists (771) to judge1 am: too few checklists (771) to judge2 am: too few checklists (701) to judge3 am: too few checklists (752) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1378) to judge5 am: too few checklists (9462) to judge6 am: 49% of 94591 checklists7 am: 56% of 296183 checklists8 am: 53% of 319987 checklists9 am: 46% of 254830 checklists10 am: 37% of 209480 checklists11 am: 32% of 163924 checklists12 pm: 30% of 133478 checklists1 pm: 29% of 125012 checklists2 pm: 30% of 125299 checklists3 pm: 32% of 131072 checklists4 pm: 33% of 134410 checklists5 pm: 32% of 113373 checklists6 pm: 35% of 69886 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (37509) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (8966) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2093) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1485) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (862) 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
January29%30%31%32%
February35%36%36%38%
March37%37%38%41%
April42%42%43%42%
May43%42%42%41%
June39%39%40%40%
July42%42%41%42%
August41%43%44%47%
September50%54%57%60%
October60%60%59%55%
November49%43%39%36%
December33%32%31%31%

Neighboring states

Common questions

When do Blue Jays arrive in Florida?
The Blue Jay is in Florida all year. It turns up on about 60% of checklists at its peak (early October) and on 30% in its quietest week (the second week of January).
When do Blue Jays leave Florida?
The Blue Jay does not leave Florida: it is reported all year, from 30% of checklists in the second week of January to 60% in early October.
When is the best time to see a Blue Jay in Florida?
The Blue Jay is reported most often in early October, on about 60% of Florida checklists.
Where in Florida are Blue Jays seen most often?
By county, Washington County, Broward County, and Santa Rosa County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Blue Jay (counties with at least 200 checklists).