WhenToBird

Molothrus ater · Icteridae

When Do Brown-headed Cowbirds Arrive in West Virginia?

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

Brown-headed Cowbirds reach West Virginia in late February, are common by late March, peak in mid April (30% of checklists), and most are gone by early July.

When to look

First arrivalsFeb 22-28late February
Common byMar 22-31late March
PeakApr 15-21mid April
Most gone byJul 1-7early July

Best: mid April. First arrivals late February; most are gone by early July. Peak: on about 30% of West Virginia checklists.

  1. Janrare
  2. Febrare
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augrare
  9. Seprare
  10. Octrare
  11. Novrare
  12. Decrare

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

0%10%20%30%40%Jan 1-7: 1.6% of 4227 checklistsJan 8-14: 2.3% of 3147 checklistsJan 15-21: 3.2% of 3410 checklistsJan 22-31: 2.1% of 4248 checklistsFeb 1-7: 2.1% of 3150 checklistsFeb 8-14: 1.5% of 3653 checklistsFeb 15-21: 1.9% of 5140 checklistsFeb 22-28: 2.0% of 3846 checklistsMar 1-7: 2.8% of 3901 checklistsMar 8-14: 4.4% of 3820 checklistsMar 15-21: 8.5% of 3781 checklistsMar 22-31: 16% of 5705 checklistsApr 1-7: 23% of 4529 checklistsApr 8-14: 27% of 4935 checklistsApr 15-21: 32% of 5429 checklistsApr 22-30: 31% of 8015 checklistsMay 1-7: 28% of 7421 checklistsMay 8-14: 27% of 6910 checklistsMay 15-21: 25% of 5596 checklistsMay 22-31: 22% of 6884 checklistsJun 1-7: 19% of 4123 checklistsJun 8-14: 19% of 3957 checklistsJun 15-21: 16% of 3863 checklistsJun 22-30: 15% of 4217 checklistsJul 1-7: 13% of 3491 checklistsJul 8-14: 7.3% of 3044 checklistsJul 15-21: 4.1% of 3095 checklistsJul 22-31: 2.9% of 4120 checklistsAug 1-7: 2.7% of 3009 checklistsAug 8-14: 2.7% of 3007 checklistsAug 15-21: 2.7% of 2905 checklistsAug 22-31: 1.7% of 4312 checklistsSep 1-7: 1.6% of 3429 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.9% of 3217 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.5% of 3285 checklistsSep 22-30: 1.0% of 4067 checklistsOct 1-7: 1.7% of 3380 checklistsOct 8-14: 1.9% of 3460 checklistsOct 15-21: 1.8% of 3129 checklistsOct 22-31: 1.8% of 3881 checklistsNov 1-7: 1.6% of 3084 checklistsNov 8-14: 1.4% of 2869 checklistsNov 15-21: 2.2% of 2484 checklistsNov 22-30: 1.5% of 3663 checklistsDec 1-7: 1.4% of 2574 checklistsDec 8-14: 1.4% of 2680 checklistsDec 15-21: 1.9% of 3792 checklistsDec 22-31: 1.3% of 4236 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 West Virginia 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 West Virginia

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Ritchie CountyBest the second week of April · 105 checklists that week, 3,552 in all68%
  2. Wetzel CountyBest late April · 62 checklists that week, 1,196 in all63%
  3. Jackson CountyBest mid April · 36 checklists that week, 1,317 in all52%
  4. Marshall CountyBest late May · 32 checklists that week, 895 in all52%
  5. Wood CountyBest late April · 430 checklists that week, 8,802 in all49%
  6. Jefferson CountyBest early May · 679 checklists that week, 18,557 in all48%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Ohio River Islands National Wildlife RefugeWood County, best mid April · 45 checklists that week, 1,994 in all92%
  2. Stonewall Jackson LakeLewis County, best mid May · 21 checklists that week, 350 in all79%
  3. Fairfax Grant Farm SpringsJefferson County, best mid April · 25 checklists that week, 441 in all78%
  4. Monongahela National ForestPocahontas County, best early June · 20 checklists that week, 272 in all77%
  5. Harpers Ferry National Historical Park (Bolivar)Jefferson County, best late April · 24 checklists that week, 251 in all76%
  6. Wade SpringMonongalia County, best the second week of May · 20 checklists that week, 401 in all75%

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

Best time of day

In West Virginia, the Brown-headed Cowbird is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (19% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%12 am: too few checklists (65) to judge1 am: too few checklists (47) to judge2 am: too few checklists (46) to judge3 am: too few checklists (49) to judge4 am: too few checklists (140) to judge5 am: too few checklists (952) to judge6 am: 23% of 5860 checklists7 am: 18% of 18233 checklists8 am: 16% of 24468 checklists9 am: 12% of 22542 checklists10 am: 9.5% of 19537 checklists11 am: 7.7% of 16362 checklists12 pm: 6.9% of 14819 checklists1 pm: 6.7% of 12772 checklists2 pm: 6.5% of 11765 checklists3 pm: 5.9% of 12579 checklists4 pm: 7.0% of 11463 checklists5 pm: 8.5% of 9409 checklists6 pm: 10% of 6557 checklists7 pm: 9.5% of 4256 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (1589) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (377) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (147) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (86) 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
January1.6%2.3%3.2%2.1%
February2.1%1.5%1.9%2.0%
March2.8%4.4%8.5%16%
April23%27%32%31%
May28%27%25%22%
June19%19%16%15%
July13%7.3%4.1%2.9%
August2.7%2.7%2.7%1.7%
September1.6%0.9%1.5%1.0%
October1.7%1.9%1.8%1.8%
November1.6%1.4%2.2%1.5%
December1.4%1.4%1.9%1.3%

Neighboring states

  • Virginia: arrives late March, 4 weeks later than West Virginia
  • District of Columbia: arrives late February, in the same week than West Virginia
  • Maryland: arrives late March, 4 weeks later than West Virginia
  • Ohio: arrives the second week of February, 2 weeks earlier than West Virginia

Common questions

When do Brown-headed Cowbirds arrive in West Virginia?
Brown-headed Cowbirds reach West Virginia in late February, are common by late March, peak in mid April (30% of checklists), and most are gone by early July.
When do Brown-headed Cowbirds leave West Virginia?
Most Brown-headed Cowbirds have left West Virginia by early July, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until mid August.
When is the best time to see a Brown-headed Cowbird in West Virginia?
The Brown-headed Cowbird is reported most often in mid April, on about 30% of West Virginia checklists.
Where in West Virginia are Brown-headed Cowbirds seen most often?
By county, Ritchie County, Wetzel County, and Jackson County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Brown-headed Cowbird (counties with at least 200 checklists).