WhenToBird

Bombycilla cedrorum · Bombycillidae

When Do Cedar Waxwings Arrive in California?

Adult Cedar Waxwing
Photo: Sean Frey, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Cedar Waxwings reach California in late July, are common by the second week of September, peak in early May (10% of checklists), and most are gone by late May.

When to look

First arrivalsJul 22-31late July
Common bySep 8-14the second week of September
PeakMay 1-7early May
Most gone byMay 22-31late May

Best: early May. First arrivals late July; most are gone by late May. Peak: on about 10% of California checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Julrare
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%5%10%15%Jan 1-7: 7.9% of 112336 checklistsJan 8-14: 7.9% of 85518 checklistsJan 15-21: 7.7% of 86488 checklistsJan 22-31: 7.7% of 116174 checklistsFeb 1-7: 7.9% of 75171 checklistsFeb 8-14: 8.0% of 84467 checklistsFeb 15-21: 7.9% of 105683 checklistsFeb 22-28: 7.9% of 83396 checklistsMar 1-7: 8.3% of 77470 checklistsMar 8-14: 7.8% of 75180 checklistsMar 15-21: 8.2% of 80770 checklistsMar 22-31: 8.7% of 114116 checklistsApr 1-7: 9.2% of 84057 checklistsApr 8-14: 9.4% of 83692 checklistsApr 15-21: 9.2% of 89242 checklistsApr 22-30: 9.8% of 114289 checklistsMay 1-7: 11% of 85728 checklistsMay 8-14: 10% of 91984 checklistsMay 15-21: 7.5% of 75478 checklistsMay 22-31: 4.0% of 106250 checklistsJun 1-7: 1.7% of 70051 checklistsJun 8-14: 1.2% of 67485 checklistsJun 15-21: 1.0% of 66269 checklistsJun 22-30: 1.0% of 79172 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.9% of 62877 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.9% of 60328 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.9% of 59705 checklistsJul 22-31: 1.1% of 83796 checklistsAug 1-7: 1.2% of 60215 checklistsAug 8-14: 1.4% of 60172 checklistsAug 15-21: 1.8% of 59877 checklistsAug 22-31: 2.9% of 89107 checklistsSep 1-7: 3.8% of 72000 checklistsSep 8-14: 4.2% of 71228 checklistsSep 15-21: 4.6% of 76808 checklistsSep 22-30: 5.5% of 100204 checklistsOct 1-7: 6.2% of 76571 checklistsOct 8-14: 6.4% of 80874 checklistsOct 15-21: 7.7% of 74581 checklistsOct 22-31: 8.2% of 97498 checklistsNov 1-7: 8.8% of 70851 checklistsNov 8-14: 8.5% of 72431 checklistsNov 15-21: 8.6% of 66767 checklistsNov 22-30: 8.4% of 94737 checklistsDec 1-7: 8.9% of 65393 checklistsDec 8-14: 9.2% of 67449 checklistsDec 15-21: 9.6% of 83421 checklistsDec 22-31: 8.6% of 124993 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 California 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 California

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Humboldt CountyBest early August · 1309 checklists that week, 95,963 in all31%
  2. Sacramento CountyBest late October · 3060 checklists that week, 121,767 in all31%
  3. Sutter CountyBest the second week of September · 52 checklists that week, 4,996 in all28%
  4. San Joaquin CountyBest late October · 886 checklists that week, 33,237 in all24%
  5. San Francisco CountyBest early May · 2848 checklists that week, 130,018 in all24%
  6. Del Norte CountyBest early June · 330 checklists that week, 16,363 in all24%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Palmer CreekHumboldt County, best the second week of July · 41 checklists that week, 796 in all94%
  2. American River Parkway (west 2)Sacramento County, best late October · 26 checklists that week, 633 in all90%
  3. Sacramento BarSacramento County, best late September · 28 checklists that week, 556 in all89%
  4. Creekside Park (Dry Creek)Contra Costa County, best the second week of December · 21 checklists that week, 206 in all88%
  5. American River ParkwaySacramento County, best the second week of October · 33 checklists that week, 1,855 in all88%

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

Best time of day

In California, the Cedar Waxwing is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (9.5% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%12 am: too few checklists (1688) to judge1 am: too few checklists (1451) to judge2 am: too few checklists (1402) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1743) to judge4 am: too few checklists (4647) to judge5 am: too few checklists (32158) to judge6 am: 8.0% of 186053 checklists7 am: 10% of 444086 checklists8 am: 8.6% of 535846 checklists9 am: 6.9% of 486061 checklists10 am: 5.6% of 411130 checklists11 am: 4.9% of 325798 checklists12 pm: 4.8% of 269132 checklists1 pm: 4.9% of 244762 checklists2 pm: 5.6% of 235420 checklists3 pm: 6.6% of 232365 checklists4 pm: 5.4% of 208688 checklists5 pm: 5.4% of 146104 checklists6 pm: 4.3% of 96867 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (50942) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (14803) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (5561) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (3546) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (2092) 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
January7.9%7.9%7.7%7.7%
February7.9%8.0%7.9%7.9%
March8.3%7.8%8.2%8.7%
April9.2%9.4%9.2%9.8%
May11%10%7.5%4.0%
June1.7%1.2%1.0%1.0%
July0.9%0.9%0.9%1.1%
August1.2%1.4%1.8%2.9%
September3.8%4.2%4.6%5.5%
October6.2%6.4%7.7%8.2%
November8.8%8.5%8.6%8.4%
December8.9%9.2%9.6%8.6%

Neighboring states

  • Nevada: arrives mid August, 3 weeks later than California
  • Utah: year-round, peaks early June
  • Arizona: arrives the second week of September, 6 weeks later than California
  • Oregon: arrives late April, 12 weeks earlier than California

Common questions

When do Cedar Waxwings arrive in California?
Cedar Waxwings reach California in late July, are common by the second week of September, peak in early May (10% of checklists), and most are gone by late May.
When do Cedar Waxwings leave California?
Most Cedar Waxwings have left California by late May, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until mid June.
When is the best time to see a Cedar Waxwing in California?
The Cedar Waxwing is reported most often in early May, on about 10% of California checklists.
Where in California are Cedar Waxwings seen most often?
By county, Humboldt County, Sacramento County, and Sutter County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Cedar Waxwing (counties with at least 200 checklists).