WhenToBird

Sterna hirundo · Laridae

When Do Common Terns Arrive in Ohio?

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

Common Terns arrive in Ohio in late April, peak in the second week of May (4.6% of checklists), and most are gone by late September.

When to look

First arrivalsApr 22-30late April
Common byApr 22-30late April
PeakMay 8-14the second week of May
Most gone bySep 22-30late September

Best: the second week of May. First arrivals late April; most are gone by late September. Peak: on about 4.6% of Ohio checklists.

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

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

0%2%4%6%Jan 1-7: 0% of 46637 checklistsJan 8-14: 0% of 31056 checklistsJan 15-21: 0% of 30129 checklistsJan 22-31: 0% of 38665 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0% of 27203 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0% of 30626 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0% of 40705 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0% of 31391 checklistsMar 1-7: 0% of 32914 checklistsMar 8-14: 0% of 33973 checklistsMar 15-21: 0% of 33678 checklistsMar 22-31: 0% of 49889 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.1% of 41225 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.2% of 47174 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.6% of 47017 checklistsApr 22-30: 1.1% of 73055 checklistsMay 1-7: 3.7% of 80637 checklistsMay 8-14: 5.7% of 102552 checklistsMay 15-21: 3.8% of 64582 checklistsMay 22-31: 1.2% of 52766 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.8% of 29279 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.8% of 25773 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.8% of 23163 checklistsJun 22-30: 1.2% of 27794 checklistsJul 1-7: 1.7% of 23334 checklistsJul 8-14: 1.5% of 22147 checklistsJul 15-21: 1.2% of 20998 checklistsJul 22-31: 1.3% of 29749 checklistsAug 1-7: 1.4% of 22899 checklistsAug 8-14: 1.6% of 21972 checklistsAug 15-21: 1.9% of 22215 checklistsAug 22-31: 1.5% of 35087 checklistsSep 1-7: 1.7% of 29148 checklistsSep 8-14: 1.9% of 28042 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.9% of 26751 checklistsSep 22-30: 1.2% of 32398 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.4% of 26209 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.3% of 26809 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.4% of 23504 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.4% of 33269 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.4% of 25563 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.3% of 23810 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.2% of 22127 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.1% of 29449 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.1% of 22370 checklistsDec 8-14: 0% of 21581 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.1% of 24232 checklistsDec 22-31: 0% of 36084 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 Ohio 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 Ohio

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Lucas CountyBest early July · 1620 checklists that week, 152,906 in all16%
  2. Erie CountyBest early May · 1800 checklists that week, 30,456 in all11%
  3. Ashtabula CountyBest mid August · 230 checklists that week, 12,390 in all9.7%
  4. Sandusky CountyBest late June · 255 checklists that week, 14,537 in all8.1%
  5. Mercer CountyBest early October · 38 checklists that week, 2,091 in all7.7%
  6. Logan CountyBest the second week of May · 296 checklists that week, 10,014 in all7.5%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Metzger Marsh Wildlife AreaLucas County, best mid June · 28 checklists that week, 3,188 in all72%
  2. Metzger Marsh Wildlife Area (east)Lucas County, best late May · 25 checklists that week, 670 in all71%
  3. Maumee Bay State Park (Erie Beach)Lucas County, best mid August · 43 checklists that week, 1,537 in all68%
  4. Metzger Marsh Wildlife Area (east)Lucas County, best the second week of June · 20 checklists that week, 3,089 in all68%
  5. Howard Farms Land Acquisition (west)Lucas County, best the second week of August · 99 checklists that week, 3,485 in all62%
  6. Maumee Bay State Park (west 2)Lucas County, best late August · 33 checklists that week, 1,241 in all61%

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

Best time of day

In Ohio, the Common Tern is most often listed on checklists started between 1 and 3 pm (1.5% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%1.5%2%12 am: too few checklists (574) to judge1 am: too few checklists (609) to judge2 am: too few checklists (466) to judge3 am: too few checklists (478) to judge4 am: too few checklists (662) to judge5 am: too few checklists (4366) to judge6 am: 1.6% of 43093 checklists7 am: 1.1% of 142017 checklists8 am: 0.9% of 205296 checklists9 am: 0.9% of 196322 checklists10 am: 1.0% of 170882 checklists11 am: 1.1% of 144567 checklists12 pm: 1.3% of 126551 checklists1 pm: 1.5% of 117855 checklists2 pm: 1.5% of 112869 checklists3 pm: 1.4% of 109786 checklists4 pm: 1.3% of 103116 checklists5 pm: 1.3% of 78409 checklists6 pm: 1.3% of 56785 checklists7 pm: 1.2% of 37923 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (14954) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2710) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (854) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (486) 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%
April0.1%0.2%0.6%1.1%
May3.7%5.7%3.8%1.2%
June0.8%0.8%0.8%1.2%
July1.7%1.5%1.2%1.3%
August1.4%1.6%1.9%1.5%
September1.7%1.9%0.9%1.2%
October0.4%0.3%0.4%0.4%
November0.4%0.3%0.2%0.1%
December0.1%0%0.1%0%

Neighboring states

  • Michigan: arrives early May, 1 week later than Ohio
  • Virginia: arrives early May, 1 week later than Ohio
  • Maryland: arrives early May, 1 week later than Ohio
  • North Carolina: arrives the second week of May, 2 weeks later than Ohio

Common questions

When do Common Terns arrive in Ohio?
Common Terns arrive in Ohio in late April, peak in the second week of May (4.6% of checklists), and most are gone by late September.
When do Common Terns leave Ohio?
Most Common Terns have left Ohio by late September, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Common Tern in Ohio?
The Common Tern is reported most often in the second week of May, on about 4.6% of Ohio checklists.
Where in Ohio are Common Terns seen most often?
By county, Lucas County, Erie County, and Ashtabula County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Common Tern (counties with at least 200 checklists).