WhenToBird

Molothrus ater · Icteridae

When Do Brown-headed Cowbirds Arrive in North Carolina?

Adult female Brown-headed Cowbird
Photo: Nicole, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Brown-headed Cowbirds are in North Carolina all year, but most are here in spring: numbers build from mid March, peak in mid April (29% of checklists), and fall back by early July. In the quietest week (the second week of September) they are still on about 2.5% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildMar 15-21mid March
PeakApr 15-21mid April
Fall back byJul 1-7early July
FewestSep 8-14the second week of September

Best: mid April. Here all year; numbers build from mid March and fall back by early July. Peak: on about 29% of North Carolina checklists.

  1. Janrare
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Seprare
  10. Octuncommon
  11. Novuncommon
  12. Decrare

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

0%10%20%30%Jan 1-7: 3.7% of 30085 checklistsJan 8-14: 3.9% of 22728 checklistsJan 15-21: 4.2% of 24292 checklistsJan 22-31: 4.3% of 34122 checklistsFeb 1-7: 4.2% of 26352 checklistsFeb 8-14: 4.6% of 29663 checklistsFeb 15-21: 5.9% of 41515 checklistsFeb 22-28: 6.6% of 24318 checklistsMar 1-7: 9.1% of 23408 checklistsMar 8-14: 12% of 22658 checklistsMar 15-21: 15% of 22784 checklistsMar 22-31: 22% of 36034 checklistsApr 1-7: 28% of 28131 checklistsApr 8-14: 29% of 29190 checklistsApr 15-21: 29% of 32847 checklistsApr 22-30: 29% of 47966 checklistsMay 1-7: 28% of 37076 checklistsMay 8-14: 25% of 36228 checklistsMay 15-21: 25% of 30378 checklistsMay 22-31: 22% of 40237 checklistsJun 1-7: 21% of 27551 checklistsJun 8-14: 20% of 26473 checklistsJun 15-21: 20% of 22789 checklistsJun 22-30: 19% of 27615 checklistsJul 1-7: 16% of 20022 checklistsJul 8-14: 12% of 19315 checklistsJul 15-21: 7.4% of 18934 checklistsJul 22-31: 5.2% of 25600 checklistsAug 1-7: 4.8% of 17987 checklistsAug 8-14: 4.2% of 17307 checklistsAug 15-21: 3.9% of 17080 checklistsAug 22-31: 3.3% of 25844 checklistsSep 1-7: 2.7% of 20818 checklistsSep 8-14: 2.5% of 20070 checklistsSep 15-21: 2.3% of 21984 checklistsSep 22-30: 3.0% of 26979 checklistsOct 1-7: 4.2% of 22605 checklistsOct 8-14: 5.0% of 22677 checklistsOct 15-21: 5.6% of 21407 checklistsOct 22-31: 5.4% of 25927 checklistsNov 1-7: 5.3% of 18830 checklistsNov 8-14: 4.6% of 18418 checklistsNov 15-21: 4.2% of 19101 checklistsNov 22-30: 3.9% of 25709 checklistsDec 1-7: 3.8% of 18856 checklistsDec 8-14: 3.5% of 18745 checklistsDec 15-21: 3.6% of 22478 checklistsDec 22-31: 3.5% of 34796 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 North Carolina 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.

Embed this map on your site

Where in North Carolina

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Camden CountyBest late March · 45 checklists that week, 1,667 in all71%
  2. Gates CountyBest the second week of June · 83 checklists that week, 4,066 in all61%
  3. Lenoir CountyBest mid April · 62 checklists that week, 2,189 in all58%
  4. Bladen CountyBest the second week of August · 43 checklists that week, 3,758 in all57%
  5. Cleveland CountyBest early April · 131 checklists that week, 6,121 in all52%
  6. Scotland CountyBest the second week of April · 78 checklists that week, 3,267 in all51%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Orange County Water and Sewer Authority PropertyOrange County, best the second week of April · 39 checklists that week, 2,212 in all82%
  2. City of Raleigh Greenway - Neuse River GreenwayWake County, best the second week of April · 36 checklists that week, 543 in all82%
  3. B. Everett Jordan LakeChatham County, best early May · 21 checklists that week, 3,318 in all81%
  4. City of Raleigh Open Space - Horseshoe ParkWake County, best the second week of May · 22 checklists that week, 478 in all81%

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

Best time of day

In North Carolina, the Brown-headed Cowbird is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (20% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%12 am: too few checklists (520) to judge1 am: too few checklists (489) to judge2 am: too few checklists (442) to judge3 am: too few checklists (544) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1621) to judge5 am: too few checklists (9671) to judge6 am: 24% of 50335 checklists7 am: 19% of 150152 checklists8 am: 15% of 182902 checklists9 am: 13% of 158933 checklists10 am: 11% of 128398 checklists11 am: 8.8% of 98671 checklists12 pm: 7.9% of 78640 checklists1 pm: 7.5% of 72510 checklists2 pm: 7.3% of 69179 checklists3 pm: 7.3% of 67669 checklists4 pm: 7.9% of 63964 checklists5 pm: 9.6% of 48520 checklists6 pm: 11% of 33196 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (19700) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (6160) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1943) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1119) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (651) 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
January3.7%3.9%4.2%4.3%
February4.2%4.6%5.9%6.6%
March9.1%12%15%22%
April28%29%29%29%
May28%25%25%22%
June21%20%20%19%
July16%12%7.4%5.2%
August4.8%4.2%3.9%3.3%
September2.7%2.5%2.3%3.0%
October4.2%5.0%5.6%5.4%
November5.3%4.6%4.2%3.9%
December3.8%3.5%3.6%3.5%

Neighboring states

  • South Carolina: arrives mid March, in the same week than North Carolina
  • Virginia: arrives late March, 1 week later than North Carolina
  • West Virginia: arrives late February, 3 weeks earlier than North Carolina
  • District of Columbia: arrives late February, 3 weeks earlier than North Carolina

Common questions

When do Brown-headed Cowbirds arrive in North Carolina?
Brown-headed Cowbirds are in North Carolina all year, but most are here in spring: numbers build from mid March, peak in mid April (29% of checklists), and fall back by early July. In the quietest week (the second week of September) they are still on about 2.5% of checklists.
When do Brown-headed Cowbirds leave North Carolina?
Brown-headed Cowbirds never fully leave North Carolina: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by early July, but some are still reported in every week, about 2.5% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Brown-headed Cowbird in North Carolina?
The Brown-headed Cowbird is reported most often in mid April, on about 29% of North Carolina checklists.
Where in North Carolina are Brown-headed Cowbirds seen most often?
By county, Camden County, Gates County, and Lenoir County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Brown-headed Cowbird (counties with at least 200 checklists).