WhenToBird

Perisoreus canadensis · Corvidae

When Do Canada Jays Arrive in Colorado?

Adult Canada Jay
Photo: Teagan Weiss, CC0 1.0 via iNaturalist

Canada Jays arrive in Colorado in late May, peak in early August (2.0% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of November.

When to look

First arrivalsMay 22-31late May
Common byMay 22-31late May
PeakAug 1-7early August
Most gone byNov 8-14the second week of November

Best: early August. First arrivals late May; most are gone by the second week of November. Peak: on about 2.0% of Colorado checklists.

  1. Januncommon
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Maruncommon
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novuncommon
  12. Decuncommon

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

0%1%2%3%Jan 1-7: 0.5% of 32254 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.5% of 23278 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.6% of 22933 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.6% of 30856 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.7% of 21464 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.5% of 22910 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.6% of 28739 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.5% of 21833 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.6% of 23066 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.5% of 23783 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.5% of 24797 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.3% of 38439 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.3% of 31676 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.3% of 35092 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.2% of 36778 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.1% of 50885 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.1% of 44186 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.1% of 49011 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.2% of 40784 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.5% of 53073 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.6% of 32432 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.8% of 29978 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.9% of 29457 checklistsJun 22-30: 1.0% of 36072 checklistsJul 1-7: 1.4% of 28857 checklistsJul 8-14: 1.9% of 27224 checklistsJul 15-21: 1.7% of 27629 checklistsJul 22-31: 2.0% of 37318 checklistsAug 1-7: 2.0% of 25893 checklistsAug 8-14: 1.9% of 24870 checklistsAug 15-21: 2.0% of 24035 checklistsAug 22-31: 2.1% of 35691 checklistsSep 1-7: 1.9% of 27068 checklistsSep 8-14: 1.6% of 26709 checklistsSep 15-21: 2.0% of 26098 checklistsSep 22-30: 2.0% of 31550 checklistsOct 1-7: 1.5% of 24110 checklistsOct 8-14: 1.1% of 23352 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.9% of 21895 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.6% of 28319 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.7% of 21698 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.4% of 21061 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.3% of 19855 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.3% of 25798 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.3% of 18626 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.4% of 19004 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.3% of 23103 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.4% of 30802 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 Colorado 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 Colorado

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Lake CountyBest mid December · 14 checklists that week, 2,361 in all44%
  2. San Juan CountyBest early November · 20 checklists that week, 2,012 in all40%
  3. Mineral CountyBest mid October · 13 checklists that week, 1,750 in all26%
  4. Clear Creek CountyBest the second week of September · 137 checklists that week, 8,581 in all22%
  5. Jackson CountyBest mid January · 13 checklists that week, 7,472 in all22%
  6. Park CountyBest mid September · 201 checklists that week, 11,432 in all17%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Echo Lake ParkClear Creek County, best late September · 28 checklists that week, 945 in all68%
  2. Mueller State ParkTeller County, best late September · 24 checklists that week, 613 in all65%
  3. Lake IreneGrand County, best late August · 25 checklists that week, 315 in all65%
  4. Brainard LakeBoulder County, best early August · 23 checklists that week, 512 in all59%
  5. Bear LakeLarimer County, best early November · 38 checklists that week, 806 in all49%
  6. Eagles Nest WildernessSummit County, best early August · 24 checklists that week, 185 in all45%

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

Best time of day

In Colorado, the Canada Jay is most often listed on checklists started between 11 am and 1 pm (1.2% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%1.5%12 am: too few checklists (512) to judge1 am: too few checklists (468) to judge2 am: too few checklists (513) to judge3 am: too few checklists (656) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1918) to judge5 am: too few checklists (16045) to judge6 am: 0.8% of 71991 checklists7 am: 0.7% of 159189 checklists8 am: 0.8% of 177206 checklists9 am: 0.9% of 165269 checklists10 am: 1.0% of 141029 checklists11 am: 1.2% of 115283 checklists12 pm: 1.1% of 96068 checklists1 pm: 1.0% of 89512 checklists2 pm: 0.8% of 86319 checklists3 pm: 0.6% of 82496 checklists4 pm: 0.5% of 71648 checklists5 pm: 0.5% of 52445 checklists6 pm: 0.4% of 40199 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (24246) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (7986) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2004) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (888) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (450) 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
January0.5%0.5%0.6%0.6%
February0.7%0.5%0.6%0.5%
March0.6%0.5%0.5%0.3%
April0.3%0.3%0.2%0.1%
May0.1%0.1%0.2%0.5%
June0.6%0.8%0.9%1.0%
July1.4%1.9%1.7%2.0%
August2.0%1.9%2.0%2.1%
September1.9%1.6%2.0%2.0%
October1.5%1.1%0.9%0.6%
November0.7%0.4%0.3%0.3%
December0.3%0.4%0.3%0.4%

Neighboring states

  • Wyoming: arrives early June, 1 week later than Colorado
  • South Dakota: arrives late May, in the same week than Colorado
  • Montana: arrives late May, in the same week than Colorado
  • Idaho: arrives early June, 1 week later than Colorado

Common questions

When do Canada Jays arrive in Colorado?
Canada Jays arrive in Colorado in late May, peak in early August (2.0% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of November.
When do Canada Jays leave Colorado?
Most Canada Jays have left Colorado by the second week of November, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Canada Jay in Colorado?
The Canada Jay is reported most often in early August, on about 2.0% of Colorado checklists.
Where in Colorado are Canada Jays seen most often?
By county, Lake County, San Juan County, and Mineral County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Canada Jay (counties with at least 200 checklists).