WhenToBird

Sterna hirundo · Laridae

When Do Common Terns Arrive in Florida?

Adult Common Tern
Photo: Сергей Неклюдов, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Common Terns arrive in Florida in mid May, peak in early September (2.2% of checklists), and most are gone by mid November.

When to look

First arrivalsMay 15-21mid May
Common byMay 15-21mid May
PeakSep 1-7early September
Most gone byNov 15-21mid November

Best: early September. First arrivals mid May; most are gone by mid November. Peak: on about 2.2% of Florida checklists.

  1. Janrare
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marrare
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novuncommon
  12. Decrare

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

0%1%2%3%Jan 1-7: 0.1% of 74446 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.1% of 60074 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.1% of 62945 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.1% of 84954 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.1% of 59204 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.1% of 63259 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.1% of 77150 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.1% of 62850 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.1% of 58560 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.1% of 57756 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.2% of 54898 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.1% of 76702 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.2% of 55096 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.3% of 55892 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.3% of 59358 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.3% of 73124 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.4% of 47915 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.4% of 44114 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.6% of 31858 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.6% of 40723 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.7% of 31668 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.8% of 27802 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.8% of 26698 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.6% of 32346 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.7% of 23826 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.9% of 23071 checklistsJul 15-21: 1.0% of 22903 checklistsJul 22-31: 1.3% of 32952 checklistsAug 1-7: 1.7% of 25093 checklistsAug 8-14: 1.8% of 24888 checklistsAug 15-21: 1.7% of 26030 checklistsAug 22-31: 2.0% of 38612 checklistsSep 1-7: 2.2% of 31023 checklistsSep 8-14: 2.2% of 30022 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.9% of 31611 checklistsSep 22-30: 1.6% of 42108 checklistsOct 1-7: 1.3% of 36219 checklistsOct 8-14: 1.0% of 43113 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.8% of 40987 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.8% of 53457 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.7% of 38587 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.8% of 39208 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.7% of 39729 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.4% of 54965 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.2% of 42070 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.3% of 43424 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.2% of 50581 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.1% of 82405 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 Florida 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.

Embed this map on your site

Where in Florida

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Walton CountyBest early September · 245 checklists that week, 9,530 in all12%
  2. Dixie CountyBest the second week of August · 45 checklists that week, 2,113 in all10%
  3. Escambia CountyBest the second week of August · 330 checklists that week, 25,457 in all8.5%
  4. Okaloosa CountyBest the second week of August · 164 checklists that week, 16,003 in all8.2%
  5. Volusia CountyBest late August · 834 checklists that week, 52,415 in all7.9%
  6. St. Lucie CountyBest early September · 256 checklists that week, 21,132 in all7.9%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Tom Renick ParkVolusia County, best the second week of September · 32 checklists that week, 1,941 in all85%
  2. Bean PointManatee County, best the second week of September · 22 checklists that week, 600 in all67%
  3. Fort George InletDuval County, best the second week of September · 34 checklists that week, 3,199 in all62%
  4. Siesta BeachSarasota County, best late September · 52 checklists that week, 3,512 in all55%

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

Best time of day

In Florida, the Common Tern is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (0.9% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%12 am: too few checklists (771) to judge1 am: too few checklists (771) to judge2 am: too few checklists (701) to judge3 am: too few checklists (752) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1378) to judge5 am: too few checklists (9462) to judge6 am: 0.9% of 94591 checklists7 am: 0.9% of 296183 checklists8 am: 0.5% of 319987 checklists9 am: 0.5% of 254830 checklists10 am: 0.5% of 209480 checklists11 am: 0.4% of 163924 checklists12 pm: 0.4% of 133478 checklists1 pm: 0.4% of 125012 checklists2 pm: 0.4% of 125299 checklists3 pm: 0.5% of 131072 checklists4 pm: 0.5% of 134410 checklists5 pm: 0.5% of 113373 checklists6 pm: 0.6% of 69886 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (37509) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (8966) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2093) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1485) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (862) 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
January0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
February0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
March0.1%0.1%0.2%0.1%
April0.2%0.3%0.3%0.3%
May0.4%0.4%0.6%0.6%
June0.7%0.8%0.8%0.6%
July0.7%0.9%1.0%1.3%
August1.7%1.8%1.7%2.0%
September2.2%2.2%1.9%1.6%
October1.3%1.0%0.8%0.8%
November0.7%0.8%0.7%0.4%
December0.2%0.3%0.2%0.1%

Neighboring states

  • South Carolina: arrives late March, 7 weeks earlier than Florida
  • Alabama: arrives late April, 3 weeks earlier than Florida
  • Mississippi: arrives the second week of May, 1 week earlier than Florida
  • North Carolina: arrives the second week of May, 1 week earlier than Florida

Common questions

When do Common Terns arrive in Florida?
Common Terns arrive in Florida in mid May, peak in early September (2.2% of checklists), and most are gone by mid November.
When do Common Terns leave Florida?
Most Common Terns have left Florida by mid November, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Common Tern in Florida?
The Common Tern is reported most often in early September, on about 2.2% of Florida checklists.
Where in Florida are Common Terns seen most often?
By county, Walton County, Dixie County, and Escambia County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Common Tern (counties with at least 200 checklists).