WhenToBird

Buteo platypterus · Accipitridae

When Do Broad-winged Hawks Arrive in New York?

Adult Broad-winged Hawk
Photo: Donald Davesne, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Broad-winged Hawks arrive in New York in the second week of April, peak in late April (3.5% of checklists), and most are gone by late September.

When to look

First arrivalsApr 8-14the second week of April
Common byApr 8-14the second week of April
PeakApr 22-30late April
Most gone bySep 22-30late September

Best: late April. First arrivals the second week of April; most are gone by late September. Peak: on about 3.5% of New York checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marnot usually seen
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octuncommon
  11. Novnot usually seen
  12. Decnot usually seen

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

0%2%4%6%Jan 1-7: 0% of 66410 checklistsJan 8-14: 0% of 49310 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.1% of 49919 checklistsJan 22-31: 0% of 62513 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0% of 43526 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0% of 49753 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0% of 65147 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0% of 50173 checklistsMar 1-7: 0% of 50325 checklistsMar 8-14: 0% of 55371 checklistsMar 15-21: 0% of 56293 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.1% of 82677 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.1% of 65295 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.8% of 73080 checklistsApr 15-21: 3.2% of 73857 checklistsApr 22-30: 4.1% of 106093 checklistsMay 1-7: 3.2% of 102772 checklistsMay 8-14: 2.2% of 110051 checklistsMay 15-21: 2.3% of 94797 checklistsMay 22-31: 2.2% of 101272 checklistsJun 1-7: 2.0% of 59471 checklistsJun 8-14: 2.1% of 55497 checklistsJun 15-21: 2.4% of 51761 checklistsJun 22-30: 2.2% of 59219 checklistsJul 1-7: 2.6% of 48226 checklistsJul 8-14: 2.3% of 42315 checklistsJul 15-21: 2.0% of 40637 checklistsJul 22-31: 1.8% of 57183 checklistsAug 1-7: 1.9% of 40461 checklistsAug 8-14: 1.9% of 39880 checklistsAug 15-21: 1.7% of 41146 checklistsAug 22-31: 1.7% of 63381 checklistsSep 1-7: 1.6% of 48640 checklistsSep 8-14: 2.6% of 47882 checklistsSep 15-21: 2.8% of 49063 checklistsSep 22-30: 1.4% of 57906 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.4% of 48447 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.2% of 51901 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.1% of 46717 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.1% of 61992 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.1% of 44593 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.1% of 42566 checklistsNov 15-21: 0% of 39675 checklistsNov 22-30: 0% of 51197 checklistsDec 1-7: 0% of 36567 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.1% of 37254 checklistsDec 15-21: 0% of 43754 checklistsDec 22-31: 0% of 62470 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 New York 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 New York

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Hamilton CountyBest early August · 400 checklists that week, 13,964 in all16%
  2. Oswego CountyBest late April · 1587 checklists that week, 39,208 in all13%
  3. Franklin CountyBest the second week of July · 762 checklists that week, 20,717 in all13%
  4. Warren CountyBest early May · 388 checklists that week, 12,066 in all13%
  5. Lewis CountyBest the second week of July · 214 checklists that week, 5,920 in all12%
  6. Chemung CountyBest mid July · 233 checklists that week, 21,260 in all12%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Mohonk PreserveUlster County, best mid September · 24 checklists that week, 159 in all85%
  2. John Boyd Thacher State ParkAlbany County, best the second week of September · 73 checklists that week, 315 in all83%
  3. Arthur W. Butler Memorial SanctuaryWestchester County, best mid September · 27 checklists that week, 281 in all76%
  4. Frisbee Hill ParkMonroe County, best late April · 35 checklists that week, 177 in all70%
  5. Rockland Lake State Park (Hook Mountain)Rockland County, best mid September · 38 checklists that week, 246 in all60%

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

Best time of day

In New York, the Broad-winged Hawk is most often listed on checklists started between 9 and 11 am (1.7% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%1.5%2%12 am: too few checklists (1146) to judge1 am: too few checklists (1055) to judge2 am: too few checklists (1121) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1353) to judge4 am: too few checklists (4785) to judge5 am: too few checklists (32052) to judge6 am: 1.6% of 124869 checklists7 am: 1.3% of 298506 checklists8 am: 1.5% of 337334 checklists9 am: 1.7% of 307787 checklists10 am: 1.7% of 270801 checklists11 am: 1.4% of 233238 checklists12 pm: 1.2% of 213830 checklists1 pm: 1.1% of 193321 checklists2 pm: 0.9% of 180741 checklists3 pm: 0.8% of 170348 checklists4 pm: 0.8% of 147224 checklists5 pm: 0.7% of 111962 checklists6 pm: 0.6% of 78261 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (44425) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (15648) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (4795) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (2454) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (1378) 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%0.1%0%
February0%0%0%0%
March0%0%0%0.1%
April0.1%0.8%3.2%4.1%
May3.2%2.2%2.3%2.2%
June2.0%2.1%2.4%2.2%
July2.6%2.3%2.0%1.8%
August1.9%1.9%1.7%1.7%
September1.6%2.6%2.8%1.4%
October0.4%0.2%0.1%0.1%
November0.1%0.1%0%0%
December0%0.1%0%0%

Neighboring states

  • Connecticut: arrives the second week of April, in the same week than New York
  • New Jersey: arrives early August, 15 weeks later than New York
  • Pennsylvania: arrives the second week of April, in the same week than New York
  • Vermont: arrives the second week of April, in the same week than New York

Common questions

When do Broad-winged Hawks arrive in New York?
Broad-winged Hawks arrive in New York in the second week of April, peak in late April (3.5% of checklists), and most are gone by late September.
When do Broad-winged Hawks leave New York?
Most Broad-winged Hawks have left New York by late September, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Broad-winged Hawk in New York?
The Broad-winged Hawk is reported most often in late April, on about 3.5% of New York checklists.
Where in New York are Broad-winged Hawks seen most often?
By county, Hamilton County, Oswego County, and Franklin County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Broad-winged Hawk (counties with at least 200 checklists).