WhenToBird

Bucephala clangula · Anatidae

When Do Common Goldeneyes Arrive in New York?

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

Common Goldeneyes are winter birds in New York: the first arrive in late October, they are common by mid November, peak in late January (9.7% of checklists), and most are gone by mid March.

When to look

First arrivalsOct 22-31late October
Common byNov 15-21mid November
PeakJan 22-31late January
Most gone byMar 15-21mid March

Best: late January. First arrivals late October; most are gone by mid March. Peak: on about 9.7% of New York checklists.

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

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

0%5%10%15%Jan 1-7: 7.6% of 66410 checklistsJan 8-14: 9.0% of 49310 checklistsJan 15-21: 10% of 49919 checklistsJan 22-31: 9.6% of 62513 checklistsFeb 1-7: 9.0% of 43526 checklistsFeb 8-14: 7.9% of 49753 checklistsFeb 15-21: 6.7% of 65147 checklistsFeb 22-28: 8.4% of 50173 checklistsMar 1-7: 8.0% of 50325 checklistsMar 8-14: 6.5% of 55371 checklistsMar 15-21: 4.8% of 56293 checklistsMar 22-31: 3.3% of 82677 checklistsApr 1-7: 1.9% of 65295 checklistsApr 8-14: 1.1% of 73080 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.6% of 73857 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.3% of 106093 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.1% of 102772 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.1% of 110051 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.1% of 94797 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.1% of 101272 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.1% of 59471 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.1% of 55497 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.1% of 51761 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.1% of 59219 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.1% of 48226 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.1% of 42315 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.1% of 40637 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.1% of 57183 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.1% of 40461 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.1% of 39880 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.1% of 41146 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.1% of 63381 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.1% of 48640 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.1% of 47882 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.1% of 49063 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.1% of 57906 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.1% of 48447 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.1% of 51901 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.2% of 46717 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.8% of 61992 checklistsNov 1-7: 2.4% of 44593 checklistsNov 8-14: 3.4% of 42566 checklistsNov 15-21: 4.2% of 39675 checklistsNov 22-30: 4.8% of 51197 checklistsDec 1-7: 5.3% of 36567 checklistsDec 8-14: 5.1% of 37254 checklistsDec 15-21: 5.6% of 43754 checklistsDec 22-31: 6.8% of 62470 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 York 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 York

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Clinton CountyBest late January · 102 checklists that week, 8,764 in all46%
  2. Niagara CountyBest the second week of December · 430 checklists that week, 28,936 in all43%
  3. Oswego CountyBest late January · 970 checklists that week, 39,208 in all34%
  4. Wayne CountyBest late January · 776 checklists that week, 37,738 in all31%
  5. Cayuga CountyBest late January · 576 checklists that week, 20,184 in all30%
  6. Seneca CountyBest early February · 631 checklists that week, 47,387 in all26%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Stony BrookEssex County, best late December · 30 checklists that week, 354 in all100%
  2. Blockhouse ParkSaratoga County, best the second week of January · 39 checklists that week, 418 in all98%
  3. Oak Orchard Marine ParkOrleans County, best late January · 45 checklists that week, 700 in all97%
  4. RotaryErie County, best late February · 24 checklists that week, 753 in all97%
  5. Hamlin Beach State Park (west)Monroe County, best mid November · 29 checklists that week, 382 in all97%

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

Best time of day

In New York, the Common Goldeneye is most often listed on checklists started between 1 and 3 pm (3.9% of those checklists).

0%1%2%3%4%12 am: too few checklists (1146) to judge1 am: too few checklists (1055) to judge2 am: too few checklists (1121) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1353) to judge4 am: too few checklists (4785) to judge5 am: too few checklists (32052) to judge6 am: 0.6% of 124869 checklists7 am: 1.5% of 298506 checklists8 am: 2.1% of 337334 checklists9 am: 2.7% of 307787 checklists10 am: 3.3% of 270801 checklists11 am: 3.7% of 233238 checklists12 pm: 3.6% of 213830 checklists1 pm: 3.9% of 193321 checklists2 pm: 3.9% of 180741 checklists3 pm: 3.4% of 170348 checklists4 pm: 2.3% of 147224 checklists5 pm: 1.0% of 111962 checklists6 pm: 0.4% of 78261 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (44425) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (15648) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (4795) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (2454) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (1378) 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
January7.6%9.0%10%9.6%
February9.0%7.9%6.7%8.4%
March8.0%6.5%4.8%3.3%
April1.9%1.1%0.6%0.3%
May0.1%0.1%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%0.2%0.8%
November2.4%3.4%4.2%4.8%
December5.3%5.1%5.6%6.8%

Neighboring states

  • Connecticut: arrives the second week of November, 2 weeks later than New York
  • New Jersey: arrives the second week of December, 6 weeks later than New York
  • Pennsylvania: arrives late November, 4 weeks later than New York
  • Vermont: arrives mid October, 1 week earlier than New York

Common questions

When do Common Goldeneyes arrive in New York?
Common Goldeneyes are winter birds in New York: the first arrive in late October, they are common by mid November, peak in late January (9.7% of checklists), and most are gone by mid March.
When do Common Goldeneyes leave New York?
Most Common Goldeneyes have left New York by mid March, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until the second week of April.
When is the best time to see a Common Goldeneye in New York?
The Common Goldeneye is reported most often in late January, on about 9.7% of New York checklists.
Where in New York are Common Goldeneyes seen most often?
By county, Clinton County, Niagara County, and Oswego County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Common Goldeneye (counties with at least 200 checklists).