WhenToBird

Pelecanus occidentalis · Pelecanidae

When Do Brown Pelicans Arrive in Maryland?

Adult male Brown Pelican
Photo: Henrik Kibak, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Brown Pelicans arrive in Maryland in mid May, peak in the second week of August (2.7% of checklists), and most are gone by early December.

When to look

First arrivalsMay 15-21mid May
Common byMay 15-21mid May
PeakAug 8-14the second week of August
Most gone byDec 1-7early December

Best: the second week of August. First arrivals mid May; most are gone by early December. Peak: on about 2.7% of Maryland checklists.

  1. Janrare
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Maruncommon
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Maycommon
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novcommon
  12. Decuncommon

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

0%1%2%3%Jan 1-7: 0.2% of 28716 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.3% of 21449 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.2% of 21267 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.1% of 29144 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.1% of 21347 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.1% of 22166 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.1% of 29986 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.1% of 22427 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.1% of 21389 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.1% of 22192 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.3% of 22823 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.4% of 33720 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.5% of 25513 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.5% of 27718 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.5% of 29328 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.7% of 42595 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.6% of 38532 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.6% of 42722 checklistsMay 15-21: 1.0% of 31936 checklistsMay 22-31: 1.2% of 36903 checklistsJun 1-7: 1.2% of 23191 checklistsJun 8-14: 1.2% of 21853 checklistsJun 15-21: 1.4% of 21000 checklistsJun 22-30: 1.5% of 25133 checklistsJul 1-7: 1.4% of 18715 checklistsJul 8-14: 1.9% of 16376 checklistsJul 15-21: 2.2% of 15793 checklistsJul 22-31: 2.3% of 21969 checklistsAug 1-7: 3.0% of 16013 checklistsAug 8-14: 2.8% of 15249 checklistsAug 15-21: 2.4% of 15674 checklistsAug 22-31: 2.0% of 24925 checklistsSep 1-7: 1.6% of 19808 checklistsSep 8-14: 2.0% of 18513 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.7% of 21901 checklistsSep 22-30: 1.9% of 22901 checklistsOct 1-7: 1.6% of 19111 checklistsOct 8-14: 1.4% of 18482 checklistsOct 15-21: 1.2% of 17380 checklistsOct 22-31: 1.3% of 23992 checklistsNov 1-7: 1.3% of 17915 checklistsNov 8-14: 2.3% of 18905 checklistsNov 15-21: 1.8% of 16259 checklistsNov 22-30: 1.3% of 22852 checklistsDec 1-7: 1.0% of 16108 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.5% of 16512 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.3% of 18952 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.4% of 29728 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 Maryland 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 Maryland

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Worcester CountyBest the second week of August · 619 checklists that week, 44,596 in all44%
  2. St. Mary's CountyBest early November · 257 checklists that week, 20,572 in all25%
  3. Somerset CountyBest mid July · 80 checklists that week, 9,451 in all17%
  4. Queen Anne's CountyBest late July · 562 checklists that week, 26,875 in all7.5%
  5. Dorchester CountyBest the second week of September · 337 checklists that week, 26,161 in all6.2%
  6. Calvert CountyBest mid November · 634 checklists that week, 43,807 in all4.9%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Sinepuxent Bay WmaWorcester County, best the second week of August · 40 checklists that week, 995 in all98%
  2. Ocean City InletWorcester County, best the second week of July · 27 checklists that week, 5,187 in all94%
  3. Point Lookout SpSt. Mary's County, best the second week of August · 27 checklists that week, 1,235 in all82%
  4. Assateague Island National Seashore (Great Egging Island)Worcester County, best early September · 25 checklists that week, 874 in all78%
  5. Lumber Marsh (south)Worcester County, best late May · 22 checklists that week, 392 in all76%

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

Best time of day

In Maryland, the Brown Pelican is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (1.5% of those checklists).

0%1%2%3%12 am: too few checklists (486) to judge1 am: too few checklists (451) to judge2 am: too few checklists (447) to judge3 am: too few checklists (766) to judge4 am: too few checklists (2076) to judge5 am: too few checklists (11098) to judge6 am: 2.1% of 56604 checklists7 am: 1.2% of 139255 checklists8 am: 0.9% of 148626 checklists9 am: 0.9% of 126820 checklists10 am: 0.9% of 106973 checklists11 am: 0.9% of 87483 checklists12 pm: 0.9% of 74808 checklists1 pm: 0.9% of 69428 checklists2 pm: 0.8% of 67800 checklists3 pm: 0.9% of 67688 checklists4 pm: 0.8% of 60927 checklists5 pm: 0.9% of 43876 checklists6 pm: 1.0% of 32930 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (19051) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (5708) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1977) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1170) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (635) 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
January0.2%0.3%0.2%0.1%
February0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
March0.1%0.1%0.3%0.4%
April0.5%0.5%0.5%0.7%
May0.6%0.6%1.0%1.2%
June1.2%1.2%1.4%1.5%
July1.4%1.9%2.2%2.3%
August3.0%2.8%2.4%2.0%
September1.6%2.0%1.7%1.9%
October1.6%1.4%1.2%1.3%
November1.3%2.3%1.8%1.3%
December1.0%0.5%0.3%0.4%

Neighboring states

  • Delaware: arrives the second week of May, 1 week earlier than Maryland
  • Virginia: arrives the second week of May, 1 week earlier than Maryland
  • New Jersey: arrives the second week of June, 3 weeks later than Maryland
  • North Carolina: arrives early October, 18 weeks later than Maryland

Common questions

When do Brown Pelicans arrive in Maryland?
Brown Pelicans arrive in Maryland in mid May, peak in the second week of August (2.7% of checklists), and most are gone by early December.
When do Brown Pelicans leave Maryland?
Most Brown Pelicans have left Maryland by early December, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Brown Pelican in Maryland?
The Brown Pelican is reported most often in the second week of August, on about 2.7% of Maryland checklists.
Where in Maryland are Brown Pelicans seen most often?
By county, Worcester County, St. Mary's County, and Somerset County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Brown Pelican (counties with at least 200 checklists).