WhenToBird

Setophaga tigrina · Parulidae

When Do Cape May Warblers Arrive in South Carolina?

Adult male Cape May Warbler
Photo: Mike Mulqueen, CC0 1.0 via iNaturalist

Cape May Warblers are winter birds in South Carolina: they arrive in late August, peak in early October (4.6% of checklists), and most are gone by early January.

When to look

First arrivalsAug 22-31late August
Common byAug 22-31late August
PeakOct 1-7early October
Most gone byJan 1-7early January

Best: early October. First arrivals late August; most are gone by early January. Peak: on about 4.6% of South Carolina checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marnot usually seen
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junnot usually seen
  7. Julnot usually seen
  8. Augnot usually seen
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novrare
  12. Decnot usually seen

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

0%2%4%6%Jan 1-7: 0.1% of 15487 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.1% of 11691 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.1% of 11994 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.1% of 16225 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.1% of 12192 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.1% of 14044 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.1% of 18483 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.1% of 12045 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.1% of 11511 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.1% of 11704 checklistsMar 15-21: 0% of 11526 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.1% of 17386 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.1% of 13148 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.3% of 13193 checklistsApr 15-21: 2.4% of 13936 checklistsApr 22-30: 5.8% of 19002 checklistsMay 1-7: 4.5% of 14133 checklistsMay 8-14: 1.4% of 13668 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.2% of 11064 checklistsMay 22-31: 0% of 14461 checklistsJun 1-7: 0% of 10231 checklistsJun 8-14: 0% of 9417 checklistsJun 15-21: 0% of 8012 checklistsJun 22-30: 0% of 9720 checklistsJul 1-7: 0% of 7907 checklistsJul 8-14: 0% of 7338 checklistsJul 15-21: 0% of 7312 checklistsJul 22-31: 0% of 10877 checklistsAug 1-7: 0% of 7816 checklistsAug 8-14: 0% of 7655 checklistsAug 15-21: 0% of 7797 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.1% of 11246 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.5% of 8956 checklistsSep 8-14: 1.7% of 8929 checklistsSep 15-21: 2.7% of 9389 checklistsSep 22-30: 4.2% of 13028 checklistsOct 1-7: 5.2% of 11063 checklistsOct 8-14: 4.4% of 10968 checklistsOct 15-21: 3.3% of 10264 checklistsOct 22-31: 1.3% of 12917 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.2% of 8802 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.1% of 8339 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.1% of 8798 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.1% of 12925 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.1% of 8541 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.1% of 8609 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.1% of 9961 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.1% of 17541 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 South 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 South Carolina

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Lee CountyBest late September · 25 checklists that week, 1,310 in all30%
  2. Chester CountyBest the second week of October · 10 checklists that week, 921 in all20%
  3. Pickens CountyBest late April · 714 checklists that week, 13,660 in all16%
  4. Greenville CountyBest early May · 1573 checklists that week, 53,159 in all15%
  5. Oconee CountyBest late April · 399 checklists that week, 10,415 in all15%
  6. Spartanburg CountyBest early October · 202 checklists that week, 9,954 in all12%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. South Carolina Botanical GardenPickens County, best late April · 95 checklists that week, 1,632 in all53%
  2. Langley Pond ParkAiken County, best late October · 38 checklists that week, 510 in all48%
  3. Riverbanks ZooRichland County, best late April · 22 checklists that week, 508 in all43%
  4. Cedar Falls ParkGreenville County, best early May · 66 checklists that week, 651 in all43%
  5. Lake JohnsonSpartanburg County, best late April · 28 checklists that week, 688 in all34%

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

Best time of day

In South Carolina, the Cape May Warbler is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (1.9% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%1.5%2%12 am: too few checklists (222) to judge1 am: too few checklists (160) to judge2 am: too few checklists (132) to judge3 am: too few checklists (212) to judge4 am: too few checklists (267) to judge5 am: too few checklists (1898) to judge6 am: 1.5% of 19280 checklists7 am: 2.0% of 66492 checklists8 am: 1.3% of 73941 checklists9 am: 0.9% of 63039 checklists10 am: 0.7% of 52652 checklists11 am: 0.6% of 41908 checklists12 pm: 0.6% of 36782 checklists1 pm: 0.6% of 33300 checklists2 pm: 0.5% of 32248 checklists3 pm: 0.5% of 35451 checklists4 pm: 0.5% of 34410 checklists5 pm: 0.7% of 27073 checklists6 pm: 0.5% of 17375 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (10313) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (2756) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (672) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (412) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (256) 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
January0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
February0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
March0.1%0.1%0%0.1%
April0.1%0.3%2.4%5.8%
May4.5%1.4%0.2%0%
June0%0%0%0%
July0%0%0%0%
August0%0%0%0.1%
September0.5%1.7%2.7%4.2%
October5.2%4.4%3.3%1.3%
November0.2%0.1%0.1%0.1%
December0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%

Neighboring states

  • North Carolina: arrives the second week of August, 2 weeks earlier than South Carolina
  • Georgia: arrives late December, 16 weeks later than South Carolina
  • Tennessee: arrives mid August, 1 week earlier than South Carolina
  • Virginia: arrives the second week of August, 2 weeks earlier than South Carolina

Common questions

When do Cape May Warblers arrive in South Carolina?
Cape May Warblers are winter birds in South Carolina: they arrive in late August, peak in early October (4.6% of checklists), and most are gone by early January.
When do Cape May Warblers leave South Carolina?
Most Cape May Warblers have left South Carolina by early January, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Cape May Warbler in South Carolina?
The Cape May Warbler is reported most often in early October, on about 4.6% of South Carolina checklists.
Where in South Carolina are Cape May Warblers seen most often?
By county, Lee County, Chester County, and Pickens County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Cape May Warbler (counties with at least 200 checklists).