WhenToBird

Spatula discors · Anatidae

When Do Blue-winged Teals Arrive in Maine?

Adult female Blue-winged Teal
Photo: Guy Babineau, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Blue-winged Teals arrive in Maine in early August, peak in the second week of September (1.8% of checklists), and most are gone by mid October.

When to look

First arrivalsAug 1-7early August
Common byAug 1-7early August
PeakSep 8-14the second week of September
Most gone byOct 15-21mid October

Best: the second week of September. First arrivals early August; most are gone by mid October. Peak: on about 1.8% of Maine checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Maruncommon
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maycommon
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Julrare
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novrare
  12. Decnot usually seen

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

0%0.5%1%1.5%2%Jan 1-7: 0% of 15499 checklistsJan 8-14: 0% of 11141 checklistsJan 15-21: 0% of 10729 checklistsJan 22-31: 0% of 15084 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0% of 9403 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0% of 11268 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0% of 14061 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0% of 9977 checklistsMar 1-7: 0% of 9649 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.1% of 11781 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.3% of 11613 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.3% of 17798 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.6% of 14638 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.8% of 16511 checklistsApr 15-21: 1.3% of 17164 checklistsApr 22-30: 1.1% of 22602 checklistsMay 1-7: 1.2% of 22556 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.6% of 27842 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.6% of 27748 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.6% of 38715 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.4% of 26916 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.3% of 23737 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.1% of 22733 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.2% of 28248 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.3% of 20290 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.2% of 18534 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.1% of 17319 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.2% of 22815 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.5% of 15004 checklistsAug 8-14: 1.0% of 14603 checklistsAug 15-21: 1.2% of 14972 checklistsAug 22-31: 1.7% of 19813 checklistsSep 1-7: 1.9% of 14567 checklistsSep 8-14: 1.8% of 14520 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.7% of 14339 checklistsSep 22-30: 1.4% of 16879 checklistsOct 1-7: 1.0% of 12959 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.8% of 13168 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.4% of 11184 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.2% of 13717 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.1% of 9823 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.1% of 9007 checklistsNov 15-21: 0% of 8528 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.1% of 10228 checklistsDec 1-7: 0% of 7505 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.1% of 7982 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.1% of 10455 checklistsDec 22-31: 0% of 14285 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 Maine 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 Maine

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Aroostook CountyBest mid September · 250 checklists that week, 16,817 in all13%
  2. Knox CountyBest early September · 836 checklists that week, 34,453 in all7.8%
  3. Penobscot CountyBest early September · 914 checklists that week, 56,895 in all6.0%
  4. Franklin CountyBest the second week of September · 260 checklists that week, 14,182 in all3.7%
  5. York CountyBest the second week of September · 1999 checklists that week, 101,844 in all2.4%
  6. Sagadahoc CountyBest mid August · 465 checklists that week, 21,736 in all2.2%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Lake JosephineAroostook County, best late September · 20 checklists that week, 460 in all56%
  2. Jagger PondYork County, best the second week of September · 48 checklists that week, 1,870 in all46%
  3. R. Waldo Tyler Wildlife Management AreaKnox County, best late May · 215 checklists that week, 3,511 in all44%
  4. Scarborough Marsh Wildlife Management Area (Grand Beach)Cumberland County, best late April · 110 checklists that week, 2,379 in all41%
  5. City of Bangor (Stillwater Avenue)Penobscot County, best the second week of May · 26 checklists that week, 374 in all37%
  6. City of BangorPenobscot County, best early September · 95 checklists that week, 2,579 in all36%

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

Best time of day

In Maine, the Blue-winged Teal is most often listed on checklists started between 5 and 7 am (0.9% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%12 am: too few checklists (510) to judge1 am: too few checklists (517) to judge2 am: too few checklists (581) to judge3 am: too few checklists (3242) to judge4 am: too few checklists (7221) to judge5 am: 0.7% of 19895 checklists6 am: 0.9% of 54578 checklists7 am: 0.6% of 92775 checklists8 am: 0.6% of 86962 checklists9 am: 0.5% of 78989 checklists10 am: 0.5% of 70954 checklists11 am: 0.5% of 59331 checklists12 pm: 0.5% of 50943 checklists1 pm: 0.4% of 49775 checklists2 pm: 0.5% of 49001 checklists3 pm: 0.4% of 43252 checklists4 pm: 0.5% of 33413 checklists5 pm: 0.6% of 25547 checklists6 pm: 0.5% of 18309 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (14287) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (5336) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2253) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1518) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (720) 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%0.1%0.3%0.3%
April0.6%0.8%1.3%1.1%
May1.2%0.6%0.6%0.6%
June0.4%0.3%0.1%0.2%
July0.3%0.2%0.1%0.2%
August0.5%1.0%1.2%1.7%
September1.9%1.8%1.7%1.4%
October1.0%0.8%0.4%0.2%
November0.1%0.1%0%0.1%
December0%0.1%0.1%0%

Neighboring states

  • New Hampshire: arrives the second week of August, 1 week later than Maine
  • Massachusetts: arrives the second week of March, 19 weeks earlier than Maine
  • Vermont: arrives the second week of August, 1 week later than Maine
  • Rhode Island: arrives mid March, 18 weeks earlier than Maine

Common questions

When do Blue-winged Teals arrive in Maine?
Blue-winged Teals arrive in Maine in early August, peak in the second week of September (1.8% of checklists), and most are gone by mid October.
When do Blue-winged Teals leave Maine?
Most Blue-winged Teals have left Maine by mid October, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Blue-winged Teal in Maine?
The Blue-winged Teal is reported most often in the second week of September, on about 1.8% of Maine checklists.
Where in Maine are Blue-winged Teals seen most often?
By county, Aroostook County, Knox County, and Penobscot County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Blue-winged Teal (counties with at least 200 checklists).