WhenToBird

Certhia americana · Certhiidae

When Do Brown Creepers Arrive in Colorado?

Adult Brown Creeper
Photo: Melanie Gaddy, CC0 1.0 via iNaturalist

Brown Creepers are winter birds in Colorado: the first arrive in mid June, they are common by the second week of July, peak in mid November (3.9% of checklists), and most are gone by early April.

When to look

First arrivalsJun 15-21mid June
Common byJul 8-14the second week of July
PeakNov 15-21mid November
Most gone byApr 1-7early April

Best: mid November. First arrivals mid June; most are gone by early April. Peak: on about 3.9% of Colorado checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marcommon
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Mayrare
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%2%4%6%Jan 1-7: 3.5% of 32254 checklistsJan 8-14: 3.0% of 23278 checklistsJan 15-21: 3.2% of 22933 checklistsJan 22-31: 3.5% of 30856 checklistsFeb 1-7: 3.0% of 21464 checklistsFeb 8-14: 2.9% of 22910 checklistsFeb 15-21: 2.6% of 28739 checklistsFeb 22-28: 3.2% of 21833 checklistsMar 1-7: 3.0% of 23066 checklistsMar 8-14: 2.6% of 23783 checklistsMar 15-21: 2.4% of 24797 checklistsMar 22-31: 1.9% of 38439 checklistsApr 1-7: 1.4% of 31676 checklistsApr 8-14: 1.0% of 35092 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.8% of 36778 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.6% of 50885 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.4% of 44186 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.4% of 49011 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.5% of 40784 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.6% of 53073 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.7% of 32432 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.9% of 29978 checklistsJun 15-21: 1.0% of 29457 checklistsJun 22-30: 1.1% of 36072 checklistsJul 1-7: 1.5% of 28857 checklistsJul 8-14: 1.6% of 27224 checklistsJul 15-21: 2.1% of 27629 checklistsJul 22-31: 2.3% of 37318 checklistsAug 1-7: 2.5% of 25893 checklistsAug 8-14: 2.6% of 24870 checklistsAug 15-21: 2.3% of 24035 checklistsAug 22-31: 2.1% of 35691 checklistsSep 1-7: 2.2% of 27068 checklistsSep 8-14: 2.1% of 26709 checklistsSep 15-21: 2.7% of 26098 checklistsSep 22-30: 3.4% of 31550 checklistsOct 1-7: 4.0% of 24110 checklistsOct 8-14: 3.6% of 23352 checklistsOct 15-21: 3.7% of 21895 checklistsOct 22-31: 3.4% of 28319 checklistsNov 1-7: 3.9% of 21698 checklistsNov 8-14: 3.5% of 21061 checklistsNov 15-21: 4.3% of 19855 checklistsNov 22-30: 4.0% of 25798 checklistsDec 1-7: 3.1% of 18626 checklistsDec 8-14: 3.7% of 19004 checklistsDec 15-21: 4.1% of 23103 checklistsDec 22-31: 3.3% of 30802 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 Colorado 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 Colorado

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Gilpin CountyBest early December · 10 checklists that week, 4,252 in all23%
  2. San Juan CountyBest early November · 20 checklists that week, 2,012 in all20%
  3. Teller CountyBest mid December · 72 checklists that week, 11,258 in all19%
  4. Custer CountyBest the second week of November · 24 checklists that week, 3,017 in all16%
  5. Mineral CountyBest the second week of October · 13 checklists that week, 1,750 in all14%
  6. Conejos CountyBest early November · 11 checklists that week, 1,636 in all14%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Sheldon LakeLarimer County, best mid November · 54 checklists that week, 2,868 in all66%
  2. Rossborough ParkLarimer County, best mid December · 22 checklists that week, 301 in all58%
  3. Flying J Ranch ParkJefferson County, best the second week of August · 22 checklists that week, 542 in all54%
  4. Mud LakeBoulder County, best late September · 25 checklists that week, 387 in all50%
  5. Fountain Creek Regional ParkEl Paso County, best the second week of February · 54 checklists that week, 2,751 in all45%

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

Best time of day

In Colorado, the Brown Creeper is most often listed on checklists started between 8 and 10 am (2.6% of those checklists).

0%1%2%3%12 am: too few checklists (512) to judge1 am: too few checklists (468) to judge2 am: too few checklists (513) to judge3 am: too few checklists (656) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1918) to judge5 am: too few checklists (16045) to judge6 am: 2.2% of 71991 checklists7 am: 2.4% of 159189 checklists8 am: 2.6% of 177206 checklists9 am: 2.7% of 165269 checklists10 am: 2.5% of 141029 checklists11 am: 2.4% of 115283 checklists12 pm: 2.2% of 96068 checklists1 pm: 2.1% of 89512 checklists2 pm: 2.0% of 86319 checklists3 pm: 2.0% of 82496 checklists4 pm: 1.6% of 71648 checklists5 pm: 1.0% of 52445 checklists6 pm: 0.7% of 40199 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (24246) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (7986) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2004) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (888) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (450) 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
January3.5%3.0%3.2%3.5%
February3.0%2.9%2.6%3.2%
March3.0%2.6%2.4%1.9%
April1.4%1.0%0.8%0.6%
May0.4%0.4%0.5%0.6%
June0.7%0.9%1.0%1.1%
July1.5%1.6%2.1%2.3%
August2.5%2.6%2.3%2.1%
September2.2%2.1%2.7%3.4%
October4.0%3.6%3.7%3.4%
November3.9%3.5%4.3%4.0%
December3.1%3.7%4.1%3.3%

Neighboring states

  • Wyoming: arrives early July, 2 weeks later than Colorado
  • New Mexico: arrives late May, 3 weeks earlier than Colorado
  • Utah: arrives late June, 1 week later than Colorado
  • Nebraska: arrives early October, 14 weeks later than Colorado

Common questions

When do Brown Creepers arrive in Colorado?
Brown Creepers are winter birds in Colorado: the first arrive in mid June, they are common by the second week of July, peak in mid November (3.9% of checklists), and most are gone by early April.
When do Brown Creepers leave Colorado?
Most Brown Creepers have left Colorado by early April, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until the second week of April.
When is the best time to see a Brown Creeper in Colorado?
The Brown Creeper is reported most often in mid November, on about 3.9% of Colorado checklists.
Where in Colorado are Brown Creepers seen most often?
By county, Gilpin County, San Juan County, and Teller County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Brown Creeper (counties with at least 200 checklists).