WhenToBird

Branta canadensis · Anatidae

When Do Canada Geese Arrive in Pennsylvania?

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

Canada Geese are in Pennsylvania all year, but most are here in spring: numbers build from early February, peak in the second week of March (45% of checklists), and fall back by the second week of May. In the quietest week (late June) they are still on about 11% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildFeb 1-7early February
PeakMar 8-14the second week of March
Fall back byMay 8-14the second week of May
FewestJun 22-30late June

Best: the second week of March. Here all year; numbers build from early February and fall back by the second week of May. Peak: on about 45% of Pennsylvania checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novcommon
  12. Deccommon

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

0%20%40%60%Jan 1-7: 32% of 47145 checklistsJan 8-14: 29% of 35840 checklistsJan 15-21: 27% of 35423 checklistsJan 22-31: 28% of 49126 checklistsFeb 1-7: 30% of 36366 checklistsFeb 8-14: 30% of 42248 checklistsFeb 15-21: 28% of 55888 checklistsFeb 22-28: 42% of 42050 checklistsMar 1-7: 46% of 42709 checklistsMar 8-14: 46% of 43985 checklistsMar 15-21: 43% of 44547 checklistsMar 22-31: 43% of 66940 checklistsApr 1-7: 41% of 51147 checklistsApr 8-14: 40% of 54868 checklistsApr 15-21: 40% of 57252 checklistsApr 22-30: 37% of 81727 checklistsMay 1-7: 33% of 76472 checklistsMay 8-14: 31% of 79341 checklistsMay 15-21: 29% of 61724 checklistsMay 22-31: 23% of 70722 checklistsJun 1-7: 19% of 45652 checklistsJun 8-14: 14% of 41810 checklistsJun 15-21: 12% of 38973 checklistsJun 22-30: 11% of 44255 checklistsJul 1-7: 12% of 34822 checklistsJul 8-14: 15% of 31104 checklistsJul 15-21: 19% of 29262 checklistsJul 22-31: 20% of 41436 checklistsAug 1-7: 21% of 29189 checklistsAug 8-14: 21% of 28840 checklistsAug 15-21: 20% of 29948 checklistsAug 22-31: 19% of 48235 checklistsSep 1-7: 19% of 37175 checklistsSep 8-14: 18% of 36527 checklistsSep 15-21: 21% of 37261 checklistsSep 22-30: 24% of 43583 checklistsOct 1-7: 29% of 35352 checklistsOct 8-14: 30% of 35560 checklistsOct 15-21: 30% of 33119 checklistsOct 22-31: 31% of 44654 checklistsNov 1-7: 29% of 32965 checklistsNov 8-14: 29% of 31305 checklistsNov 15-21: 29% of 29471 checklistsNov 22-30: 32% of 38642 checklistsDec 1-7: 31% of 28779 checklistsDec 8-14: 31% of 29486 checklistsDec 15-21: 29% of 37465 checklistsDec 22-31: 30% of 50651 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 Pennsylvania 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 Pennsylvania

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Crawford CountyBest late March · 1080 checklists that week, 23,552 in all71%
  2. Montour CountyBest the second week of March · 161 checklists that week, 6,082 in all68%
  3. Bucks CountyBest early December · 1455 checklists that week, 95,030 in all63%
  4. Northampton CountyBest the second week of March · 1021 checklists that week, 45,480 in all60%
  5. Lancaster CountyBest early March · 2427 checklists that week, 97,892 in all60%
  6. Lebanon CountyBest early March · 915 checklists that week, 33,727 in all58%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Reedy SpringBerks County, best the second week of February · 78 checklists that week, 1,113 in all100%
  2. WoodburyBedford County, best the second week of December · 45 checklists that week, 113 in all100%
  3. Morrisville Dog ParkBucks County, best early April · 20 checklists that week, 250 in all100%
  4. Tobyhanna LakeMonroe County, best late March · 20 checklists that week, 314 in all100%
  5. State Game Land 282Warren County, best late March · 26 checklists that week, 270 in all100%

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

Best time of day

In Pennsylvania, the Canada Goose is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (32% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%40%12 am: too few checklists (1558) to judge1 am: too few checklists (1136) to judge2 am: too few checklists (839) to judge3 am: too few checklists (842) to judge4 am: too few checklists (2550) to judge5 am: too few checklists (18294) to judge6 am: 34% of 92903 checklists7 am: 32% of 241233 checklists8 am: 31% of 271994 checklists9 am: 30% of 236842 checklists10 am: 29% of 199508 checklists11 am: 27% of 161893 checklists12 pm: 27% of 143945 checklists1 pm: 27% of 134352 checklists2 pm: 28% of 129692 checklists3 pm: 28% of 126132 checklists4 pm: 28% of 115055 checklists5 pm: 28% of 90719 checklists6 pm: 27% of 67534 checklists7 pm: 24% of 43004 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (13966) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (3913) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1989) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (1146) 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
January32%29%27%28%
February30%30%28%42%
March46%46%43%43%
April41%40%40%37%
May33%31%29%23%
June19%14%12%11%
July12%15%19%20%
August21%21%20%19%
September19%18%21%24%
October29%30%30%31%
November29%29%29%32%
December31%31%29%30%

Neighboring states

  • Maryland: year-round, peaks early March
  • District of Columbia: arrives the second week of November, 11 weeks earlier than Pennsylvania
  • Delaware: year-round, peaks the second week of April
  • New Jersey: arrives mid October, 14 weeks earlier than Pennsylvania

Common questions

When do Canada Geese arrive in Pennsylvania?
Canada Geese are in Pennsylvania all year, but most are here in spring: numbers build from early February, peak in the second week of March (45% of checklists), and fall back by the second week of May. In the quietest week (late June) they are still on about 11% of checklists.
When do Canada Geese leave Pennsylvania?
Canada Geese never fully leave Pennsylvania: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by the second week of May, but some are still reported in every week, about 11% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Canada Goose in Pennsylvania?
The Canada Goose is reported most often in the second week of March, on about 45% of Pennsylvania checklists.
Where in Pennsylvania are Canada Geese seen most often?
By county, Crawford County, Montour County, and Bucks County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Canada Goose (counties with at least 200 checklists).