WhenToBird

Poecile rufescens · Paridae

When Do Chestnut-backed Chickadees Arrive in Idaho?

Adult Chestnut-backed Chickadee
Photo: John Rosford, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

The Chestnut-backed Chickadee is in Idaho all year. It turns up on about 3.5% of checklists at its peak (early March) and on 1.8% in its quietest week (the second week of May).

When to look

PresentAll year
Peak weekMar 1-7early March
Quietest weekMay 8-14the second week of May

Best: early March. Here all year. Peak: on about 3.5% of Idaho checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maycommon
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%1%2%3%4%Jan 1-7: 2.8% of 9357 checklistsJan 8-14: 3.1% of 6408 checklistsJan 15-21: 3.0% of 6358 checklistsJan 22-31: 2.8% of 8601 checklistsFeb 1-7: 3.5% of 5611 checklistsFeb 8-14: 3.4% of 6090 checklistsFeb 15-21: 3.2% of 7973 checklistsFeb 22-28: 3.4% of 5866 checklistsMar 1-7: 3.7% of 6144 checklistsMar 8-14: 3.5% of 6456 checklistsMar 15-21: 3.3% of 6786 checklistsMar 22-31: 2.6% of 9539 checklistsApr 1-7: 2.5% of 7202 checklistsApr 8-14: 2.4% of 7608 checklistsApr 15-21: 2.3% of 8069 checklistsApr 22-30: 2.4% of 10973 checklistsMay 1-7: 1.9% of 9481 checklistsMay 8-14: 1.8% of 11318 checklistsMay 15-21: 1.8% of 9141 checklistsMay 22-31: 1.9% of 13984 checklistsJun 1-7: 2.0% of 8897 checklistsJun 8-14: 2.0% of 8504 checklistsJun 15-21: 2.9% of 8078 checklistsJun 22-30: 3.1% of 9665 checklistsJul 1-7: 3.3% of 7144 checklistsJul 8-14: 3.2% of 6557 checklistsJul 15-21: 3.4% of 6430 checklistsJul 22-31: 3.1% of 8696 checklistsAug 1-7: 2.5% of 5896 checklistsAug 8-14: 3.3% of 5643 checklistsAug 15-21: 2.4% of 6151 checklistsAug 22-31: 3.2% of 7863 checklistsSep 1-7: 3.6% of 5769 checklistsSep 8-14: 3.7% of 5646 checklistsSep 15-21: 2.7% of 5460 checklistsSep 22-30: 3.5% of 6363 checklistsOct 1-7: 3.3% of 4980 checklistsOct 8-14: 3.1% of 5096 checklistsOct 15-21: 3.3% of 4878 checklistsOct 22-31: 3.2% of 6426 checklistsNov 1-7: 2.9% of 4822 checklistsNov 8-14: 3.2% of 4999 checklistsNov 15-21: 3.5% of 4601 checklistsNov 22-30: 3.4% of 6027 checklistsDec 1-7: 3.4% of 4180 checklistsDec 8-14: 3.1% of 4775 checklistsDec 15-21: 2.9% of 6522 checklistsDec 22-31: 3.3% of 7792 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 Idaho 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 Idaho

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Bonner CountyBest mid December · 136 checklists that week, 10,972 in all57%
  2. Boundary CountyBest early February · 71 checklists that week, 6,362 in all40%
  3. Benewah CountyBest mid February · 29 checklists that week, 2,541 in all36%
  4. Clearwater CountyBest mid July · 70 checklists that week, 1,909 in all23%
  5. Shoshone CountyBest the second week of July · 116 checklists that week, 2,886 in all16%
  6. Kootenai CountyBest mid September · 99 checklists that week, 8,249 in all16%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Sandpoint City Beach ParkBonner County, best late September · 32 checklists that week, 337 in all41%
  2. Spring Valley Reservoir Access SiteLatah County, best late November · 23 checklists that week, 536 in all28%
  3. Fall CreekValley County, best mid March · 20 checklists that week, 539 in all21%
  4. Tubbs HillKootenai County, best the second week of June · 22 checklists that week, 364 in all14%
  5. Mason CreekCanyon County, best early January · 91 checklists that week, 1,694 in all9.8%

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

Best time of day

In Idaho, the Chestnut-backed Chickadee is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (4.7% of those checklists).

0%2%4%6%12 am: too few checklists (180) to judge1 am: too few checklists (176) to judge2 am: too few checklists (169) to judge3 am: too few checklists (164) to judge4 am: too few checklists (450) to judge5 am: too few checklists (2270) to judge6 am: 5.4% of 9122 checklists7 am: 4.5% of 22204 checklists8 am: 4.2% of 38672 checklists9 am: 3.0% of 38930 checklists10 am: 3.2% of 37338 checklists11 am: 3.7% of 33508 checklists12 pm: 3.0% of 28544 checklists1 pm: 2.4% of 25774 checklists2 pm: 2.0% of 24296 checklists3 pm: 1.4% of 21784 checklists4 pm: 1.1% of 19051 checklists5 pm: 1.2% of 14150 checklists6 pm: 1.0% of 10014 checklists7 pm: 0.6% of 7495 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (4352) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1449) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (525) 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
January2.8%3.1%3.0%2.8%
February3.5%3.4%3.2%3.4%
March3.7%3.5%3.3%2.6%
April2.5%2.4%2.3%2.4%
May1.9%1.8%1.8%1.9%
June2.0%2.0%2.9%3.1%
July3.3%3.2%3.4%3.1%
August2.5%3.3%2.4%3.2%
September3.6%3.7%2.7%3.5%
October3.3%3.1%3.3%3.2%
November2.9%3.2%3.5%3.4%
December3.4%3.1%2.9%3.3%

Neighboring states

  • Montana: winter visitor, peaks late February
  • Oregon: year-round, peaks the second week of September
  • Washington: year-round, peaks early August
  • California: year-round, peaks mid September

Common questions

When do Chestnut-backed Chickadees arrive in Idaho?
The Chestnut-backed Chickadee is in Idaho all year. It turns up on about 3.5% of checklists at its peak (early March) and on 1.8% in its quietest week (the second week of May).
When do Chestnut-backed Chickadees leave Idaho?
The Chestnut-backed Chickadee does not leave Idaho: it is reported all year, from 1.8% of checklists in the second week of May to 3.5% in early March.
When is the best time to see a Chestnut-backed Chickadee in Idaho?
The Chestnut-backed Chickadee is reported most often in early March, on about 3.5% of Idaho checklists.
Where in Idaho are Chestnut-backed Chickadees seen most often?
By county, Bonner County, Boundary County, and Benewah County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Chestnut-backed Chickadee (counties with at least 200 checklists).