WhenToBird

Cyanocitta cristata · Corvidae

When Do Blue Jays Arrive in Montana?

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

Blue Jays are winter birds in Montana: the first arrive in late July, they are common by mid August, peak in the second week of November (10% of checklists), and most are gone by early May.

When to look

First arrivalsJul 22-31late July
Common byAug 15-21mid August
PeakNov 8-14the second week of November
Most gone byMay 1-7early May

Best: the second week of November. First arrivals late July; most are gone by early May. Peak: on about 10% of Montana checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Juluncommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Deccommon

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

0%5%10%15%Jan 1-7: 5.5% of 7987 checklistsJan 8-14: 5.0% of 5561 checklistsJan 15-21: 4.6% of 5613 checklistsJan 22-31: 5.0% of 7881 checklistsFeb 1-7: 4.9% of 5018 checklistsFeb 8-14: 5.4% of 5598 checklistsFeb 15-21: 5.1% of 7247 checklistsFeb 22-28: 5.3% of 5531 checklistsMar 1-7: 5.7% of 6110 checklistsMar 8-14: 5.6% of 6623 checklistsMar 15-21: 5.2% of 7687 checklistsMar 22-31: 4.5% of 11095 checklistsApr 1-7: 4.9% of 7774 checklistsApr 8-14: 4.2% of 8785 checklistsApr 15-21: 3.5% of 9684 checklistsApr 22-30: 3.4% of 13805 checklistsMay 1-7: 3.4% of 11847 checklistsMay 8-14: 3.3% of 13547 checklistsMay 15-21: 2.9% of 13019 checklistsMay 22-31: 2.3% of 20456 checklistsJun 1-7: 1.7% of 12993 checklistsJun 8-14: 1.6% of 11594 checklistsJun 15-21: 1.6% of 11159 checklistsJun 22-30: 1.5% of 13786 checklistsJul 1-7: 1.9% of 9584 checklistsJul 8-14: 1.7% of 9078 checklistsJul 15-21: 1.8% of 7905 checklistsJul 22-31: 2.1% of 10906 checklistsAug 1-7: 2.8% of 7335 checklistsAug 8-14: 3.0% of 6868 checklistsAug 15-21: 3.3% of 6866 checklistsAug 22-31: 4.4% of 10076 checklistsSep 1-7: 4.9% of 7670 checklistsSep 8-14: 5.2% of 7490 checklistsSep 15-21: 5.5% of 6804 checklistsSep 22-30: 6.1% of 8016 checklistsOct 1-7: 8.3% of 5996 checklistsOct 8-14: 9.1% of 6156 checklistsOct 15-21: 9.8% of 5742 checklistsOct 22-31: 9.9% of 7790 checklistsNov 1-7: 10% of 5353 checklistsNov 8-14: 10% of 5475 checklistsNov 15-21: 9.8% of 4603 checklistsNov 22-30: 8.1% of 6067 checklistsDec 1-7: 7.8% of 4362 checklistsDec 8-14: 6.5% of 4467 checklistsDec 15-21: 5.3% of 5328 checklistsDec 22-31: 6.3% of 6672 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 Montana 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 Montana

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Valley CountyBest mid January · 21 checklists that week, 3,392 in all53%
  2. Richland CountyBest the second week of September · 29 checklists that week, 673 in all41%
  3. Yellowstone CountyBest late September · 257 checklists that week, 13,895 in all36%
  4. Custer CountyBest the second week of September · 34 checklists that week, 1,404 in all35%
  5. Flathead CountyBest the second week of November · 505 checklists that week, 40,185 in all30%
  6. Sanders CountyBest early November · 56 checklists that week, 3,767 in all29%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Downstream Recreation AreaValley County, best the second week of September · 41 checklists that week, 487 in all48%
  2. Willow CreekGallatin County, best late October · 30 checklists that week, 911 in all41%
  3. Gardner ParkGallatin County, best the second week of November · 30 checklists that week, 2,009 in all33%
  4. Thompson Falls ReservoirSanders County, best late April · 24 checklists that week, 414 in all32%
  5. Flathead Lake/Wayfarers State ParkFlathead County, best late October · 26 checklists that week, 635 in all32%

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

Best time of day

In Montana, the Blue Jay is most often listed on checklists started between 7 and 9 am (7.3% of those checklists).

0%2%4%6%8%12 am: too few checklists (183) to judge1 am: too few checklists (169) to judge2 am: too few checklists (163) to judge3 am: too few checklists (212) to judge4 am: too few checklists (503) to judge5 am: too few checklists (4022) to judge6 am: 6.0% of 12719 checklists7 am: 7.7% of 31202 checklists8 am: 7.0% of 47646 checklists9 am: 5.5% of 44624 checklists10 am: 4.8% of 40704 checklists11 am: 4.0% of 33825 checklists12 pm: 3.6% of 29407 checklists1 pm: 3.3% of 27959 checklists2 pm: 3.1% of 26928 checklists3 pm: 3.0% of 25313 checklists4 pm: 2.4% of 22151 checklists5 pm: 2.2% of 16884 checklists6 pm: 2.2% of 13780 checklists7 pm: 2.0% of 9926 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (5765) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2099) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (595) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (230) 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
January5.5%5.0%4.6%5.0%
February4.9%5.4%5.1%5.3%
March5.7%5.6%5.2%4.5%
April4.9%4.2%3.5%3.4%
May3.4%3.3%2.9%2.3%
June1.7%1.6%1.6%1.5%
July1.9%1.7%1.8%2.1%
August2.8%3.0%3.3%4.4%
September4.9%5.2%5.5%6.1%
October8.3%9.1%9.8%9.9%
November10%10%9.8%8.1%
December7.8%6.5%5.3%6.3%

Neighboring states

  • Idaho: arrives late September, 8 weeks later than Montana
  • Wyoming: arrives mid July, 1 week earlier than Montana
  • Colorado: year-round, peaks early October
  • North Dakota: arrives late August, 4 weeks later than Montana

Common questions

When do Blue Jays arrive in Montana?
Blue Jays are winter birds in Montana: the first arrive in late July, they are common by mid August, peak in the second week of November (10% of checklists), and most are gone by early May.
When do Blue Jays leave Montana?
Most Blue Jays have left Montana by early May, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until early June.
When is the best time to see a Blue Jay in Montana?
The Blue Jay is reported most often in the second week of November, on about 10% of Montana checklists.
Where in Montana are Blue Jays seen most often?
By county, Valley County, Richland County, and Yellowstone County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Blue Jay (counties with at least 200 checklists).