WhenToBird

Gavia immer · Gaviidae

When Do Common Loons Arrive in Michigan?

Adult Common Loon
Photo: Hungry-Sarracenia Photo, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Common Loons arrive in Michigan in mid March, peak in early April (7.3% of checklists), and most are gone by late November.

When to look

First arrivalsMar 15-21mid March
Common byMar 15-21mid March
PeakApr 1-7early April
Most gone byNov 22-30late November

Best: early April. First arrivals mid March; most are gone by late November. Peak: on about 7.3% of Michigan checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maycommon
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novcommon
  12. Decuncommon

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

0%5%10%Jan 1-7: 0.3% of 38160 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.2% of 24696 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.2% of 23771 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.2% of 31347 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.2% of 23225 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.1% of 27398 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.1% of 36606 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.1% of 27127 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.1% of 29700 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.3% of 31587 checklistsMar 15-21: 1.4% of 32118 checklistsMar 22-31: 6.5% of 47777 checklistsApr 1-7: 8.2% of 38557 checklistsApr 8-14: 7.5% of 42207 checklistsApr 15-21: 6.2% of 42759 checklistsApr 22-30: 4.6% of 64458 checklistsMay 1-7: 3.2% of 60998 checklistsMay 8-14: 2.5% of 72091 checklistsMay 15-21: 3.3% of 59058 checklistsMay 22-31: 3.7% of 64724 checklistsJun 1-7: 3.3% of 35990 checklistsJun 8-14: 3.1% of 32595 checklistsJun 15-21: 3.0% of 30017 checklistsJun 22-30: 2.9% of 33988 checklistsJul 1-7: 3.1% of 28708 checklistsJul 8-14: 2.9% of 25175 checklistsJul 15-21: 2.8% of 24084 checklistsJul 22-31: 3.1% of 33522 checklistsAug 1-7: 3.1% of 25098 checklistsAug 8-14: 3.0% of 24353 checklistsAug 15-21: 2.9% of 25059 checklistsAug 22-31: 2.4% of 37489 checklistsSep 1-7: 1.8% of 28410 checklistsSep 8-14: 2.0% of 27887 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.7% of 26614 checklistsSep 22-30: 1.7% of 32557 checklistsOct 1-7: 1.6% of 25844 checklistsOct 8-14: 2.1% of 27741 checklistsOct 15-21: 2.7% of 24693 checklistsOct 22-31: 3.3% of 32460 checklistsNov 1-7: 3.7% of 23660 checklistsNov 8-14: 3.3% of 21542 checklistsNov 15-21: 2.7% of 19922 checklistsNov 22-30: 2.1% of 25069 checklistsDec 1-7: 1.3% of 18272 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.6% of 18961 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.5% of 24171 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.3% of 30908 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 Michigan 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 Michigan

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Lake CountyBest the second week of August · 68 checklists that week, 2,682 in all30%
  2. Ogemaw CountyBest early August · 83 checklists that week, 4,675 in all28%
  3. Baraga CountyBest early November · 55 checklists that week, 3,662 in all27%
  4. Schoolcraft CountyBest late July · 158 checklists that week, 3,719 in all25%
  5. Iron CountyBest the second week of August · 49 checklists that week, 2,651 in all25%
  6. Chippewa CountyBest the second week of October · 789 checklists that week, 28,128 in all24%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Nepessing LakeLapeer County, best the second week of April · 37 checklists that week, 515 in all86%
  2. Duck LakeCalhoun County, best the second week of April · 26 checklists that week, 893 in all85%
  3. Walled LakeOakland County, best the second week of April · 44 checklists that week, 1,326 in all82%
  4. Thompson LakeLivingston County, best the second week of April · 22 checklists that week, 439 in all82%
  5. Barton PondWashtenaw County, best the second week of April · 69 checklists that week, 1,449 in all81%
  6. Gull LakeKalamazoo County, best the second week of April · 24 checklists that week, 1,132 in all80%

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

Best time of day

In Michigan, the Common Loon is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (4.5% of those checklists).

0%2%4%6%12 am: too few checklists (712) to judge1 am: too few checklists (592) to judge2 am: too few checklists (532) to judge3 am: too few checklists (516) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1592) to judge5 am: too few checklists (6849) to judge6 am: 5.5% of 39298 checklists7 am: 4.2% of 120344 checklists8 am: 3.0% of 180109 checklists9 am: 2.7% of 171966 checklists10 am: 2.5% of 156332 checklists11 am: 2.2% of 134964 checklists12 pm: 2.2% of 120967 checklists1 pm: 2.2% of 113852 checklists2 pm: 2.2% of 110773 checklists3 pm: 2.2% of 105530 checklists4 pm: 2.2% of 100958 checklists5 pm: 2.3% of 80085 checklists6 pm: 2.7% of 62883 checklists7 pm: 2.9% of 44912 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (21062) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (5920) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1629) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (775) 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
January0.3%0.2%0.2%0.2%
February0.2%0.1%0.1%0.1%
March0.1%0.3%1.4%6.5%
April8.2%7.5%6.2%4.6%
May3.2%2.5%3.3%3.7%
June3.3%3.1%3.0%2.9%
July3.1%2.9%2.8%3.1%
August3.1%3.0%2.9%2.4%
September1.8%2.0%1.7%1.7%
October1.6%2.1%2.7%3.3%
November3.7%3.3%2.7%2.1%
December1.3%0.6%0.5%0.3%

Neighboring states

  • Ohio: arrives mid October, 20 weeks earlier than Michigan
  • Indiana: arrives early March, 2 weeks earlier than Michigan
  • Illinois: arrives the second week of March, 1 week earlier than Michigan
  • Wisconsin: arrives mid March, in the same week than Michigan

Common questions

When do Common Loons arrive in Michigan?
Common Loons arrive in Michigan in mid March, peak in early April (7.3% of checklists), and most are gone by late November.
When do Common Loons leave Michigan?
Most Common Loons have left Michigan by late November, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until early December.
When is the best time to see a Common Loon in Michigan?
The Common Loon is reported most often in early April, on about 7.3% of Michigan checklists.
Where in Michigan are Common Loons seen most often?
By county, Lake County, Ogemaw County, and Baraga County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Common Loon (counties with at least 200 checklists).