WhenToBird

Pelecanus occidentalis · Pelecanidae

When Do Brown Pelicans Arrive in North Carolina?

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

Brown Pelicans are in North Carolina all year, but most are here in fall: numbers build from early October, peak in late October (8.3% of checklists), and fall back by early December. In the quietest week (early May) they are still on about 3.2% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildOct 1-7early October
PeakOct 22-31late October
Fall back byDec 1-7early December
FewestMay 1-7early May

Best: late October. Here all year; numbers build from early October and fall back by early December. Peak: on about 8.3% of North Carolina checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maycommon
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%5%10%Jan 1-7: 6.2% of 30085 checklistsJan 8-14: 5.7% of 22728 checklistsJan 15-21: 6.5% of 24292 checklistsJan 22-31: 4.9% of 34122 checklistsFeb 1-7: 5.2% of 26352 checklistsFeb 8-14: 4.6% of 29663 checklistsFeb 15-21: 4.0% of 41515 checklistsFeb 22-28: 5.5% of 24318 checklistsMar 1-7: 5.3% of 23408 checklistsMar 8-14: 5.5% of 22658 checklistsMar 15-21: 4.3% of 22784 checklistsMar 22-31: 4.6% of 36034 checklistsApr 1-7: 4.2% of 28131 checklistsApr 8-14: 3.5% of 29190 checklistsApr 15-21: 3.6% of 32847 checklistsApr 22-30: 3.1% of 47966 checklistsMay 1-7: 2.9% of 37076 checklistsMay 8-14: 3.5% of 36228 checklistsMay 15-21: 4.7% of 30378 checklistsMay 22-31: 6.0% of 40237 checklistsJun 1-7: 5.1% of 27551 checklistsJun 8-14: 5.1% of 26473 checklistsJun 15-21: 5.3% of 22789 checklistsJun 22-30: 6.2% of 27615 checklistsJul 1-7: 5.7% of 20022 checklistsJul 8-14: 5.8% of 19315 checklistsJul 15-21: 6.0% of 18934 checklistsJul 22-31: 7.3% of 25600 checklistsAug 1-7: 7.5% of 17987 checklistsAug 8-14: 8.4% of 17307 checklistsAug 15-21: 8.3% of 17080 checklistsAug 22-31: 6.8% of 25844 checklistsSep 1-7: 5.5% of 20818 checklistsSep 8-14: 5.2% of 20070 checklistsSep 15-21: 5.2% of 21984 checklistsSep 22-30: 5.5% of 26979 checklistsOct 1-7: 6.1% of 22605 checklistsOct 8-14: 6.5% of 22677 checklistsOct 15-21: 9.8% of 21407 checklistsOct 22-31: 8.1% of 25927 checklistsNov 1-7: 6.7% of 18830 checklistsNov 8-14: 6.5% of 18418 checklistsNov 15-21: 6.9% of 19101 checklistsNov 22-30: 7.1% of 25709 checklistsDec 1-7: 5.4% of 18856 checklistsDec 8-14: 5.2% of 18745 checklistsDec 15-21: 4.2% of 22478 checklistsDec 22-31: 8.1% 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.

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Where in North Carolina

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Carteret CountyBest late October · 661 checklists that week, 27,746 in all54%
  2. Dare CountyBest late August · 2135 checklists that week, 83,121 in all47%
  3. Hyde CountyBest late September · 134 checklists that week, 8,350 in all44%
  4. New Hanover CountyBest mid December · 621 checklists that week, 33,362 in all42%
  5. Brunswick CountyBest early August · 614 checklists that week, 29,668 in all40%
  6. Onslow CountyBest early August · 114 checklists that week, 8,231 in all38%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Lockwoods Folly RiverBrunswick County, best the second week of October · 20 checklists that week, 582 in all100%
  2. Masonboro InletNew Hanover County, best late November · 27 checklists that week, 1,535 in all98%
  3. Fort Fisher State Recreation AreaNew Hanover County, best late October · 31 checklists that week, 1,143 in all97%
  4. Mason InletNew Hanover County, best early December · 28 checklists that week, 1,938 in all96%
  5. Fort Fisher State Historic Site (southeast)New Hanover County, best the second week of December · 22 checklists that week, 531 in all96%

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

Best time of day

In North Carolina, the Brown Pelican is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (7.0% of those checklists).

0%5%10%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: 8.7% of 50335 checklists7 am: 6.4% of 150152 checklists8 am: 4.9% of 182902 checklists9 am: 4.8% of 158933 checklists10 am: 5.2% of 128398 checklists11 am: 5.1% of 98671 checklists12 pm: 5.2% of 78640 checklists1 pm: 5.7% of 72510 checklists2 pm: 6.0% of 69179 checklists3 pm: 5.9% of 67669 checklists4 pm: 5.7% of 63964 checklists5 pm: 5.3% of 48520 checklists6 pm: 5.6% 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
January6.2%5.7%6.5%4.9%
February5.2%4.6%4.0%5.5%
March5.3%5.5%4.3%4.6%
April4.2%3.5%3.6%3.1%
May2.9%3.5%4.7%6.0%
June5.1%5.1%5.3%6.2%
July5.7%5.8%6.0%7.3%
August7.5%8.4%8.3%6.8%
September5.5%5.2%5.2%5.5%
October6.1%6.5%9.8%8.1%
November6.7%6.5%6.9%7.1%
December5.4%5.2%4.2%8.1%

Neighboring states

  • South Carolina: year-round, peaks mid November
  • Virginia: arrives the second week of May, 19 weeks earlier than North Carolina
  • Georgia: year-round, peaks early January
  • Maryland: arrives mid May, 18 weeks earlier than North Carolina

Common questions

When do Brown Pelicans arrive in North Carolina?
Brown Pelicans are in North Carolina all year, but most are here in fall: numbers build from early October, peak in late October (8.3% of checklists), and fall back by early December. In the quietest week (early May) they are still on about 3.2% of checklists.
When do Brown Pelicans leave North Carolina?
Brown Pelicans never fully leave North Carolina: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by early December, but some are still reported in every week, about 3.2% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Brown Pelican in North Carolina?
The Brown Pelican is reported most often in late October, on about 8.3% of North Carolina checklists.
Where in North Carolina are Brown Pelicans seen most often?
By county, Carteret County, Dare County, and Hyde County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Brown Pelican (counties with at least 200 checklists).