WhenToBird

Spizella pallida · Passerellidae

When Do Clay-colored Sparrows Arrive in Illinois?

Adult Clay-colored Sparrow
Photo: John Rosford, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Clay-colored Sparrows mostly pass through Illinois: they arrive in mid April, peak in the second week of May (1.5% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of July.

When to look

First arrivalsApr 15-21mid April
Common byApr 15-21mid April
PeakMay 8-14the second week of May
Most gone byJul 8-14the second week of July

Best: the second week of May. First arrivals mid April; most are gone by the second week of July. Peak: on about 1.5% of Illinois checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marnot usually seen
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Julrare
  8. Augrare
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novrare
  12. Decnot usually seen

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

0%0.5%1%1.5%2%Jan 1-7: 0% of 29700 checklistsJan 8-14: 0% of 20189 checklistsJan 15-21: 0% of 19784 checklistsJan 22-31: 0% of 26641 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0% of 20478 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0% of 21967 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0% of 28735 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0% of 24223 checklistsMar 1-7: 0% of 26775 checklistsMar 8-14: 0% of 27579 checklistsMar 15-21: 0% of 27193 checklistsMar 22-31: 0% of 42278 checklistsApr 1-7: 0% of 34579 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.1% of 38290 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.1% of 39261 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.7% of 59584 checklistsMay 1-7: 1.7% of 60485 checklistsMay 8-14: 1.6% of 59647 checklistsMay 15-21: 1.0% of 43173 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.4% of 47913 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.2% of 31151 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.2% of 27692 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.3% of 23983 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.2% of 28448 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.2% of 21273 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.2% of 19284 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.1% of 17712 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.1% of 24500 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.1% of 18498 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.1% of 19331 checklistsAug 15-21: 0% of 19983 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.1% of 31892 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.2% of 26396 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.2% of 25011 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.3% of 23597 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.6% of 30638 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.7% of 23949 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.6% of 24412 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.5% of 22359 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.2% of 29794 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.1% of 21877 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.1% of 19742 checklistsNov 15-21: 0% of 18989 checklistsNov 22-30: 0% of 23905 checklistsDec 1-7: 0% of 16935 checklistsDec 8-14: 0% of 16687 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.1% of 20931 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.1% of 29011 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 Illinois 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 Illinois

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Ogle CountyBest mid June · 122 checklists that week, 4,881 in all3.9%
  2. Lee CountyBest the second week of July · 82 checklists that week, 6,175 in all3.4%
  3. Bureau CountyBest mid May · 268 checklists that week, 10,244 in all3.1%
  4. Cook CountyBest the second week of May · 21297 checklists that week, 432,644 in all2.7%
  5. Carroll CountyBest the second week of October · 47 checklists that week, 4,152 in all2.0%
  6. Lake CountyBest the second week of May · 5288 checklists that week, 113,940 in all2.0%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Davis LakeLake County, best late June · 23 checklists that week, 921 in all31%
  2. Danada SwampDuPage County, best early May · 37 checklists that week, 1,307 in all17%
  3. Park No. 566Cook County, best the second week of September · 48 checklists that week, 3,444 in all16%
  4. Grant (Ulysses) (Fort Dearborn Addition)Cook County, best the second week of May · 34 checklists that week, 478 in all15%
  5. Middle Rock River FeeLee County, best the second week of May · 29 checklists that week, 558 in all14%
  6. Springbrook PrairieDuPage County, best early June · 121 checklists that week, 4,299 in all14%

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

Best time of day

In Illinois, the Clay-colored Sparrow is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (0.6% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%12 am: too few checklists (484) to judge1 am: too few checklists (631) to judge2 am: too few checklists (485) to judge3 am: too few checklists (610) to judge4 am: too few checklists (2321) to judge5 am: too few checklists (23536) to judge6 am: 0.8% of 95511 checklists7 am: 0.4% of 164584 checklists8 am: 0.3% of 163654 checklists9 am: 0.3% of 141804 checklists10 am: 0.2% of 122882 checklists11 am: 0.2% of 100640 checklists12 pm: 0.3% of 89894 checklists1 pm: 0.2% of 82729 checklists2 pm: 0.2% of 79801 checklists3 pm: 0.2% of 82169 checklists4 pm: 0.3% of 75124 checklists5 pm: 0.3% of 57708 checklists6 pm: 0.2% of 41843 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (20943) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (6131) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1677) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (843) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (448) 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%0%0%0%
February0%0%0%0%
March0%0%0%0%
April0%0.1%0.1%0.7%
May1.7%1.6%1.0%0.4%
June0.2%0.2%0.3%0.2%
July0.2%0.2%0.1%0.1%
August0.1%0.1%0%0.1%
September0.2%0.2%0.3%0.6%
October0.7%0.6%0.5%0.2%
November0.1%0.1%0%0%
December0%0%0.1%0.1%

Neighboring states

  • Wisconsin: arrives late April, 1 week later than Illinois
  • Michigan: arrives early May, 2 weeks later than Illinois
  • Iowa: arrives late April, 1 week later than Illinois
  • Minnesota: arrives late April, 1 week later than Illinois

Common questions

When do Clay-colored Sparrows arrive in Illinois?
Clay-colored Sparrows mostly pass through Illinois: they arrive in mid April, peak in the second week of May (1.5% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of July.
When do Clay-colored Sparrows leave Illinois?
Most Clay-colored Sparrows have left Illinois by the second week of July, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Clay-colored Sparrow in Illinois?
The Clay-colored Sparrow is reported most often in the second week of May, on about 1.5% of Illinois checklists.
Where in Illinois are Clay-colored Sparrows seen most often?
By county, Ogle County, Lee County, and Bureau County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Clay-colored Sparrow (counties with at least 200 checklists).