WhenToBird

Cyanocitta cristata · Corvidae

When Do Blue Jays Arrive in Texas?

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

The Blue Jay is in Texas all year. It turns up on about 42% of checklists at its peak (early October) and on 25% in its quietest week (mid November).

When to look

PresentAll year
Peak weekOct 1-7early October
Quietest weekNov 15-21mid November

Best: early October. Here all year. Peak: on about 42% of Texas checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novcommon
  12. Deccommon

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

0%20%40%60%Jan 1-7: 25% of 66038 checklistsJan 8-14: 25% of 52445 checklistsJan 15-21: 25% of 52985 checklistsJan 22-31: 26% of 71020 checklistsFeb 1-7: 26% of 52306 checklistsFeb 8-14: 27% of 55887 checklistsFeb 15-21: 28% of 69016 checklistsFeb 22-28: 26% of 52998 checklistsMar 1-7: 28% of 50836 checklistsMar 8-14: 27% of 51749 checklistsMar 15-21: 26% of 53731 checklistsMar 22-31: 28% of 82049 checklistsApr 1-7: 27% of 65854 checklistsApr 8-14: 27% of 78434 checklistsApr 15-21: 27% of 92302 checklistsApr 22-30: 28% of 122878 checklistsMay 1-7: 32% of 74592 checklistsMay 8-14: 34% of 61008 checklistsMay 15-21: 33% of 43365 checklistsMay 22-31: 30% of 52736 checklistsJun 1-7: 31% of 31643 checklistsJun 8-14: 31% of 30131 checklistsJun 15-21: 32% of 26802 checklistsJun 22-30: 31% of 32822 checklistsJul 1-7: 32% of 27213 checklistsJul 8-14: 32% of 24555 checklistsJul 15-21: 32% of 24146 checklistsJul 22-31: 33% of 34536 checklistsAug 1-7: 33% of 25764 checklistsAug 8-14: 33% of 26347 checklistsAug 15-21: 33% of 28431 checklistsAug 22-31: 36% of 42838 checklistsSep 1-7: 40% of 35070 checklistsSep 8-14: 42% of 33893 checklistsSep 15-21: 41% of 32572 checklistsSep 22-30: 42% of 43771 checklistsOct 1-7: 43% of 34143 checklistsOct 8-14: 42% of 37563 checklistsOct 15-21: 39% of 36263 checklistsOct 22-31: 35% of 49170 checklistsNov 1-7: 29% of 43301 checklistsNov 8-14: 23% of 48744 checklistsNov 15-21: 26% of 42213 checklistsNov 22-30: 26% of 54455 checklistsDec 1-7: 26% of 40166 checklistsDec 8-14: 26% of 41035 checklistsDec 15-21: 27% of 46983 checklistsDec 22-31: 27% 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. Angelina CountyBest the second week of September · 188 checklists that week, 10,009 in all95%
  2. Rains CountyBest the second week of September · 16 checklists that week, 1,265 in all90%
  3. Rusk CountyBest late September · 30 checklists that week, 2,213 in all90%
  4. Sabine CountyBest late September · 25 checklists that week, 1,870 in all89%
  5. Red River CountyBest late September · 24 checklists that week, 1,179 in all88%
  6. Henderson CountyBest early September · 160 checklists that week, 8,237 in all87%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. WFDD Hike & Bike TrailFort Bend County, best early September · 21 checklists that week, 590 in all100%
  2. Woodland ParkHarris County, best late September · 33 checklists that week, 1,442 in all100%
  3. Lorraine Cherry Nature Preserve (Lease)Harris County, best late April · 75 checklists that week, 759 in all100%
  4. White Oak ParkwayHarris County, best late August · 81 checklists that week, 2,952 in all99%

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

Best time of day

In Texas, the Blue Jay is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (43% of those checklists).

0%20%40%60%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: 43% of 74687 checklists7 am: 43% of 285131 checklists8 am: 38% of 329960 checklists9 am: 34% of 267889 checklists10 am: 29% of 218205 checklists11 am: 26% of 178879 checklists12 pm: 24% of 153722 checklists1 pm: 22% of 144662 checklists2 pm: 22% of 138578 checklists3 pm: 22% of 136878 checklists4 pm: 22% of 137550 checklists5 pm: 22% of 113599 checklists6 pm: 25% of 81743 checklists7 pm: 21% 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
January25%25%25%26%
February26%27%28%26%
March28%27%26%28%
April27%27%27%28%
May32%34%33%30%
June31%31%32%31%
July32%32%32%33%
August33%33%33%36%
September40%42%41%42%
October43%42%39%35%
November29%23%26%26%
December26%26%27%27%

Neighboring states

  • Louisiana: year-round, peaks late September
  • Oklahoma: year-round, peaks the second week of October
  • Arkansas: year-round, peaks early October
  • Mississippi: year-round, peaks early October

Common questions

When do Blue Jays arrive in Texas?
The Blue Jay is in Texas all year. It turns up on about 42% of checklists at its peak (early October) and on 25% in its quietest week (mid November).
When do Blue Jays leave Texas?
The Blue Jay does not leave Texas: it is reported all year, from 25% of checklists in mid November to 42% in early October.
When is the best time to see a Blue Jay in Texas?
The Blue Jay is reported most often in early October, on about 42% of Texas checklists.
Where in Texas are Blue Jays seen most often?
By county, Angelina County, Rains County, and Rusk County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Blue Jay (counties with at least 200 checklists).