WhenToBird

Bucephala clangula · Anatidae

When Do Common Goldeneyes Arrive in New Hampshire?

Adult male Common Goldeneye
Photo: Bjoern Rost, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Common Goldeneyes are winter birds in New Hampshire: the first arrive in early November, they are common by mid November, peak in the second week of January (9.1% of checklists), and most are gone by early April.

When to look

First arrivalsNov 1-7early November
Common byNov 15-21mid November
PeakJan 8-14the second week of January
Most gone byApr 1-7early April

Best: the second week of January. First arrivals early November; most are gone by early April. Peak: on about 9.1% of New Hampshire checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Mayrare
  6. Junnot usually seen
  7. Julnot usually seen
  8. Augnot usually seen
  9. Sepnot usually seen
  10. Octrare
  11. Novcommon
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%5%10%Jan 1-7: 9.8% of 8253 checklistsJan 8-14: 8.8% of 5998 checklistsJan 15-21: 8.2% of 5734 checklistsJan 22-31: 8.4% of 7776 checklistsFeb 1-7: 7.9% of 5253 checklistsFeb 8-14: 7.1% of 6802 checklistsFeb 15-21: 6.6% of 8852 checklistsFeb 22-28: 7.8% of 5792 checklistsMar 1-7: 9.1% of 6187 checklistsMar 8-14: 8.2% of 6977 checklistsMar 15-21: 7.9% of 7863 checklistsMar 22-31: 6.5% of 11746 checklistsApr 1-7: 4.1% of 9329 checklistsApr 8-14: 2.1% of 10499 checklistsApr 15-21: 1.1% of 10376 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.6% of 13086 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.4% of 13198 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.2% of 14980 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.1% of 12487 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.1% of 14294 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.1% of 8974 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.1% of 8395 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.1% of 7670 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.1% of 9188 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.1% of 7707 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.1% of 6554 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.1% of 6636 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.1% of 9599 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.1% of 6436 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.1% of 6477 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.1% of 6510 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.1% of 9762 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.1% of 6700 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.1% of 6012 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.1% of 6238 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.1% of 7619 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.1% of 6702 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.1% of 6863 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.1% of 6284 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.6% of 8287 checklistsNov 1-7: 1.4% of 7584 checklistsNov 8-14: 3.3% of 6056 checklistsNov 15-21: 4.7% of 5597 checklistsNov 22-30: 4.8% of 7140 checklistsDec 1-7: 3.9% of 4623 checklistsDec 8-14: 6.1% of 4920 checklistsDec 15-21: 5.2% of 6416 checklistsDec 22-31: 8.3% of 7659 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 New Hampshire 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 New Hampshire

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Belknap CountyBest early December · 138 checklists that week, 13,295 in all26%
  2. Rockingham CountyBest the second week of January · 1675 checklists that week, 84,864 in all17%
  3. Sullivan CountyBest late November · 233 checklists that week, 13,105 in all11%
  4. Merrimack CountyBest mid March · 816 checklists that week, 36,980 in all10%
  5. Strafford CountyBest early February · 735 checklists that week, 41,888 in all9.6%
  6. Hillsborough CountyBest the second week of January · 874 checklists that week, 50,125 in all9.3%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Fairhill SwampRockingham County, best mid February · 25 checklists that week, 517 in all91%
  2. Odiornes PointRockingham County, best late February · 58 checklists that week, 5,375 in all83%
  3. Seal RocksRockingham County, best mid February · 20 checklists that week, 483 in all81%

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

Best time of day

In New Hampshire, the Common Goldeneye is most often listed on checklists started between 1 and 3 pm (4.4% of those checklists).

0%2%4%6%12 am: too few checklists (219) to judge1 am: too few checklists (192) to judge2 am: too few checklists (176) to judge3 am: too few checklists (234) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1042) to judge5 am: too few checklists (6352) to judge6 am: 0.8% of 23140 checklists7 am: 1.2% of 43401 checklists8 am: 2.0% of 48039 checklists9 am: 2.7% of 43328 checklists10 am: 3.4% of 37073 checklists11 am: 4.1% of 32028 checklists12 pm: 4.4% of 27396 checklists1 pm: 4.4% of 25182 checklists2 pm: 4.5% of 24318 checklists3 pm: 3.8% of 21974 checklists4 pm: 2.2% of 17958 checklists5 pm: 1.2% of 14528 checklists6 pm: 0.8% of 9144 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (5341) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (1845) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (578) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (346) 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
January9.8%8.8%8.2%8.4%
February7.9%7.1%6.6%7.8%
March9.1%8.2%7.9%6.5%
April4.1%2.1%1.1%0.6%
May0.4%0.2%0.1%0.1%
June0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
July0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
August0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
September0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
October0.1%0.1%0.1%0.6%
November1.4%3.3%4.7%4.8%
December3.9%6.1%5.2%8.3%

Neighboring states

  • Massachusetts: arrives early November, in the same week than New Hampshire
  • Vermont: arrives mid October, 2 weeks earlier than New Hampshire
  • Rhode Island: arrives mid November, 2 weeks later than New Hampshire
  • Maine: arrives late October, 1 week earlier than New Hampshire

Common questions

When do Common Goldeneyes arrive in New Hampshire?
Common Goldeneyes are winter birds in New Hampshire: the first arrive in early November, they are common by mid November, peak in the second week of January (9.1% of checklists), and most are gone by early April.
When do Common Goldeneyes leave New Hampshire?
Most Common Goldeneyes have left New Hampshire by early April, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until mid April.
When is the best time to see a Common Goldeneye in New Hampshire?
The Common Goldeneye is reported most often in the second week of January, on about 9.1% of New Hampshire checklists.
Where in New Hampshire are Common Goldeneyes seen most often?
By county, Belknap County, Rockingham County, and Sullivan County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Common Goldeneye (counties with at least 200 checklists).