WhenToBird

Quiscalus major · Icteridae

When Do Boat-tailed Grackles Arrive in Texas?

Adult female Boat-tailed Grackle
Photo: Josiah Londerée, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Boat-tailed Grackles reach Texas in the second week of September, are common by mid September, peak in mid April (3.9% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of August.

When to look

First arrivalsSep 8-14the second week of September
Common bySep 15-21mid September
PeakApr 15-21mid April
Most gone byAug 8-14the second week of August

Best: mid April. First arrivals the second week of September; most are gone by the second week of August. Peak: on about 3.9% of Texas checklists.

  1. Januncommon
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maycommon
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Juluncommon
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octuncommon
  11. Novuncommon
  12. Decuncommon

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

0%2%4%6%Jan 1-7: 0.7% of 66038 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.6% of 52445 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.6% of 52985 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.7% of 71020 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.7% of 52306 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.7% of 55887 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.6% of 69016 checklistsFeb 22-28: 1.0% of 52998 checklistsMar 1-7: 1.0% of 50836 checklistsMar 8-14: 1.2% of 51749 checklistsMar 15-21: 1.4% of 53731 checklistsMar 22-31: 1.9% of 82049 checklistsApr 1-7: 2.0% of 65854 checklistsApr 8-14: 3.3% of 78434 checklistsApr 15-21: 4.6% of 92302 checklistsApr 22-30: 3.8% of 122878 checklistsMay 1-7: 2.0% of 74592 checklistsMay 8-14: 1.2% of 61008 checklistsMay 15-21: 1.1% of 43365 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.8% of 52736 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.7% of 31643 checklistsJun 8-14: 1.0% of 30131 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.8% of 26802 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.9% of 32822 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.8% of 27213 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.7% of 24555 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.8% of 24146 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.8% of 34536 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.7% of 25764 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.7% of 26347 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.6% of 28431 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.4% of 42838 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.6% of 35070 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.5% of 33893 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.7% of 32572 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.8% of 43771 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.8% of 34143 checklistsOct 8-14: 1.0% of 37563 checklistsOct 15-21: 1.0% of 36263 checklistsOct 22-31: 1.1% of 49170 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.7% of 43301 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.6% of 48744 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.6% of 42213 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.6% of 54455 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.5% of 40166 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.6% of 41035 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.9% of 46983 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.6% 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. Jefferson CountyBest mid April · 2800 checklists that week, 23,503 in all40%
  2. Chambers CountyBest late March · 748 checklists that week, 23,046 in all36%
  3. Calhoun CountyBest mid September · 72 checklists that week, 7,186 in all29%
  4. Matagorda CountyBest late March · 393 checklists that week, 8,247 in all24%
  5. Refugio CountyBest late October · 36 checklists that week, 3,809 in all16%
  6. Brazoria CountyBest the second week of April · 1681 checklists that week, 38,709 in all14%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Sea Rim State ParkJefferson County, best late May · 20 checklists that week, 2,040 in all86%
  2. Jocelyn Nungaray National Wildlife RefugeChambers County, best mid May · 24 checklists that week, 3,245 in all81%
  3. San Bernard National Wildlife Refuge (southeast)Brazoria County, best late April · 26 checklists that week, 497 in all80%
  4. Zipperian BayouMatagorda County, best late March · 31 checklists that week, 683 in all75%

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

Best time of day

In Texas, the Boat-tailed Grackle is most often listed on checklists started between 1 and 3 pm (1.6% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%1.5%2%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: 1.3% of 74687 checklists7 am: 1.1% of 285131 checklists8 am: 1.1% of 329960 checklists9 am: 1.3% of 267889 checklists10 am: 1.3% of 218205 checklists11 am: 1.4% of 178879 checklists12 pm: 1.5% of 153722 checklists1 pm: 1.6% of 144662 checklists2 pm: 1.6% of 138578 checklists3 pm: 1.6% of 136878 checklists4 pm: 1.4% of 137550 checklists5 pm: 1.2% of 113599 checklists6 pm: 0.9% of 81743 checklists7 pm: 0.6% 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
January0.7%0.6%0.6%0.7%
February0.7%0.7%0.6%1.0%
March1.0%1.2%1.4%1.9%
April2.0%3.3%4.6%3.8%
May2.0%1.2%1.1%0.8%
June0.7%1.0%0.8%0.9%
July0.8%0.7%0.8%0.8%
August0.7%0.7%0.6%0.4%
September0.6%0.5%0.7%0.8%
October0.8%1.0%1.0%1.1%
November0.7%0.6%0.6%0.6%
December0.5%0.6%0.9%0.6%

Neighboring states

  • Louisiana: arrives the second week of March, 24 weeks earlier than Texas
  • Mississippi: arrives mid August, 3 weeks earlier than Texas
  • Alabama: year-round, peaks mid March
  • Georgia: arrives late August, 2 weeks earlier than Texas

Common questions

When do Boat-tailed Grackles arrive in Texas?
Boat-tailed Grackles reach Texas in the second week of September, are common by mid September, peak in mid April (3.9% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of August.
When do Boat-tailed Grackles leave Texas?
Most Boat-tailed Grackles have left Texas by the second week of August, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until mid August.
When is the best time to see a Boat-tailed Grackle in Texas?
The Boat-tailed Grackle is reported most often in mid April, on about 3.9% of Texas checklists.
Where in Texas are Boat-tailed Grackles seen most often?
By county, Jefferson County, Chambers County, and Calhoun County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Boat-tailed Grackle (counties with at least 200 checklists).