WhenToBird

Branta hutchinsii · Anatidae

When Do Cackling Geese Arrive in New Mexico?

Adult Cackling Goose
Photo: Tser, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Cackling Geese are winter birds in New Mexico: the first arrive in late October, they are common by early November, peak in mid January (5.2% of checklists), and most are gone by mid February.

When to look

First arrivalsOct 22-31late October
Common byNov 1-7early November
PeakJan 15-21mid January
Most gone byFeb 15-21mid February

Best: mid January. First arrivals late October; most are gone by mid February. Peak: on about 5.2% of New Mexico checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Maruncommon
  4. Aprrare
  5. Maynot usually seen
  6. Junnot usually seen
  7. Julnot usually seen
  8. Augnot usually seen
  9. Sepnot usually seen
  10. Octuncommon
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%2%4%6%Jan 1-7: 4.8% of 11827 checklistsJan 8-14: 5.6% of 9370 checklistsJan 15-21: 5.0% of 9561 checklistsJan 22-31: 5.2% of 12707 checklistsFeb 1-7: 4.8% of 9365 checklistsFeb 8-14: 3.1% of 10141 checklistsFeb 15-21: 2.3% of 12431 checklistsFeb 22-28: 2.4% of 9159 checklistsMar 1-7: 1.8% of 9348 checklistsMar 8-14: 1.0% of 9704 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.6% of 9896 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.4% of 14679 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.2% of 11145 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.1% of 11939 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.1% of 12885 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.1% of 17935 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.1% of 15202 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.1% of 16604 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.1% of 12720 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.1% of 16699 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.1% of 9889 checklistsJun 8-14: 0% of 9322 checklistsJun 15-21: 0% of 8341 checklistsJun 22-30: 0% of 10562 checklistsJul 1-7: 0% of 9036 checklistsJul 8-14: 0% of 8461 checklistsJul 15-21: 0% of 8585 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.1% of 11800 checklistsAug 1-7: 0% of 8289 checklistsAug 8-14: 0% of 8882 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.1% of 9136 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.1% of 12662 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.1% of 9936 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.1% of 9581 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.1% of 9355 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.1% of 12402 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.2% of 9467 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.2% of 10279 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.3% of 8990 checklistsOct 22-31: 1.2% of 11986 checklistsNov 1-7: 2.8% of 8461 checklistsNov 8-14: 3.5% of 8801 checklistsNov 15-21: 4.5% of 8616 checklistsNov 22-30: 4.8% of 11088 checklistsDec 1-7: 4.9% of 8444 checklistsDec 8-14: 4.3% of 8575 checklistsDec 15-21: 4.7% of 10958 checklistsDec 22-31: 4.4% of 14523 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 New Mexico 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 New Mexico

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Curry CountyBest early January · 55 checklists that week, 2,926 in all32%
  2. De Baca CountyBest the second week of January · 31 checklists that week, 2,203 in all22%
  3. Colfax CountyBest late November · 139 checklists that week, 8,053 in all21%
  4. Union CountyBest early December · 16 checklists that week, 2,373 in all17%
  5. Quay CountyBest the second week of February · 32 checklists that week, 2,220 in all13%
  6. Bernalillo CountyBest mid January · 3105 checklists that week, 135,737 in all13%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Balloon FiestaBernalillo County, best early January · 34 checklists that week, 226 in all72%
  2. Isleta LakesBernalillo County, best mid January · 35 checklists that week, 693 in all68%
  3. Clayton Lake State ParkUnion County, best late December · 30 checklists that week, 336 in all65%
  4. Valle de Oro National Wildlife RefugeBernalillo County, best mid January · 48 checklists that week, 3,551 in all58%
  5. Los Poblanos FieldsBernalillo County, best the second week of December · 41 checklists that week, 2,494 in all58%
  6. Maxwell National Wildlife RefugeColfax County, best late November · 20 checklists that week, 460 in all52%

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

Best time of day

In New Mexico, the Cackling Goose is most often listed on checklists started between 1 and 3 pm (2.6% of those checklists).

0%1%2%3%12 am: too few checklists (186) to judge1 am: too few checklists (180) to judge2 am: too few checklists (172) to judge3 am: too few checklists (183) to judge4 am: too few checklists (527) to judge5 am: too few checklists (4013) to judge6 am: 0.5% of 29677 checklists7 am: 0.9% of 71785 checklists8 am: 1.4% of 79208 checklists9 am: 1.7% of 61605 checklists10 am: 1.8% of 49588 checklists11 am: 2.2% of 38079 checklists12 pm: 2.2% of 31089 checklists1 pm: 2.6% of 27524 checklists2 pm: 2.5% of 26644 checklists3 pm: 2.0% of 26849 checklists4 pm: 1.1% of 25156 checklists5 pm: 0.4% of 19061 checklists6 pm: 0.1% of 15112 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (9040) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (2738) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (736) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (384) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (208) 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
January4.8%5.6%5.0%5.2%
February4.8%3.1%2.3%2.4%
March1.8%1.0%0.6%0.4%
April0.2%0.1%0.1%0.1%
May0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
June0.1%0%0%0%
July0%0%0%0.1%
August0%0%0.1%0.1%
September0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
October0.2%0.2%0.3%1.2%
November2.8%3.5%4.5%4.8%
December4.9%4.3%4.7%4.4%

Neighboring states

  • Colorado: arrives mid October, 1 week earlier than New Mexico
  • Utah: arrives mid November, 3 weeks later than New Mexico
  • Oklahoma: arrives early November, 1 week later than New Mexico
  • Wyoming: arrives late October, in the same week than New Mexico

Common questions

When do Cackling Geese arrive in New Mexico?
Cackling Geese are winter birds in New Mexico: the first arrive in late October, they are common by early November, peak in mid January (5.2% of checklists), and most are gone by mid February.
When do Cackling Geese leave New Mexico?
Most Cackling Geese have left New Mexico by mid February, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until the second week of March.
When is the best time to see a Cackling Goose in New Mexico?
The Cackling Goose is reported most often in mid January, on about 5.2% of New Mexico checklists.
Where in New Mexico are Cackling Geese seen most often?
By county, Curry County, De Baca County, and Colfax County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Cackling Goose (counties with at least 200 checklists).