WhenToBird

Junco hyemalis · Passerellidae

When Do Dark-eyed Juncos Arrive in Maine?

Adult male Dark-eyed Junco
Photo: Jimmy Dee, CC BY-SA 4.0 via iNaturalist

Dark-eyed Juncos are in Maine all year, but most are here in winter: numbers build from the second week of October, peak in early November (27% of checklists), and fall back by mid April. In the quietest week (late August) they are still on about 5.6% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildOct 8-14the second week of October
PeakNov 1-7early November
Fall back byApr 15-21mid April
FewestAug 22-31late August

Best: early November. Here all year; numbers build from the second week of October and fall back by mid April. Peak: on about 27% of Maine checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Juluncommon
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%10%20%30%Jan 1-7: 21% of 15499 checklistsJan 8-14: 20% of 11141 checklistsJan 15-21: 23% of 10729 checklistsJan 22-31: 21% of 15084 checklistsFeb 1-7: 22% of 9403 checklistsFeb 8-14: 21% of 11268 checklistsFeb 15-21: 24% of 14061 checklistsFeb 22-28: 19% of 9977 checklistsMar 1-7: 18% of 9649 checklistsMar 8-14: 21% of 11781 checklistsMar 15-21: 24% of 11613 checklistsMar 22-31: 27% of 17798 checklistsApr 1-7: 27% of 14638 checklistsApr 8-14: 28% of 16511 checklistsApr 15-21: 23% of 17164 checklistsApr 22-30: 16% of 22602 checklistsMay 1-7: 9.5% of 22556 checklistsMay 8-14: 7.8% of 27842 checklistsMay 15-21: 6.9% of 27748 checklistsMay 22-31: 7.0% of 38715 checklistsJun 1-7: 8.8% of 26916 checklistsJun 8-14: 8.8% of 23737 checklistsJun 15-21: 10% of 22733 checklistsJun 22-30: 9.8% of 28248 checklistsJul 1-7: 10% of 20290 checklistsJul 8-14: 10% of 18534 checklistsJul 15-21: 9.4% of 17319 checklistsJul 22-31: 8.4% of 22815 checklistsAug 1-7: 6.2% of 15004 checklistsAug 8-14: 5.7% of 14603 checklistsAug 15-21: 5.5% of 14972 checklistsAug 22-31: 5.6% of 19813 checklistsSep 1-7: 5.6% of 14567 checklistsSep 8-14: 6.3% of 14520 checklistsSep 15-21: 7.8% of 14339 checklistsSep 22-30: 11% of 16879 checklistsOct 1-7: 16% of 12959 checklistsOct 8-14: 20% of 13168 checklistsOct 15-21: 25% of 11184 checklistsOct 22-31: 30% of 13717 checklistsNov 1-7: 26% of 9823 checklistsNov 8-14: 26% of 9007 checklistsNov 15-21: 26% of 8528 checklistsNov 22-30: 24% of 10228 checklistsDec 1-7: 26% of 7505 checklistsDec 8-14: 28% of 7982 checklistsDec 15-21: 25% of 10455 checklistsDec 22-31: 23% of 14285 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 Maine 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 Maine

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Piscataquis CountyBest late October · 126 checklists that week, 14,837 in all46%
  2. Sagadahoc CountyBest late October · 300 checklists that week, 21,736 in all43%
  3. Androscoggin CountyBest the second week of December · 154 checklists that week, 16,955 in all41%
  4. Franklin CountyBest early April · 146 checklists that week, 14,182 in all38%
  5. Washington CountyBest early April · 342 checklists that week, 35,967 in all38%
  6. Lincoln CountyBest early November · 635 checklists that week, 59,429 in all38%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Mount AgamenticusYork County, best early November · 28 checklists that week, 1,103 in all90%
  2. Appalachian National Scenic TrailFranklin County, best early June · 23 checklists that week, 166 in all82%
  3. Boothbay Harbor Wetland ProtectionLincoln County, best early April · 23 checklists that week, 535 in all80%
  4. Borestone Mountain Audubon CenterPiscataquis County, best late June · 52 checklists that week, 178 in all77%
  5. Cash CornerCumberland County, best early January · 28 checklists that week, 314 in all77%
  6. Carter CoveHancock County, best late May · 22 checklists that week, 229 in all74%

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

Best time of day

In Maine, the Dark-eyed Junco is most often listed on checklists started between 7 and 9 am (20% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%12 am: too few checklists (510) to judge1 am: too few checklists (517) to judge2 am: too few checklists (581) to judge3 am: too few checklists (3242) to judge4 am: too few checklists (7221) to judge5 am: 13% of 19895 checklists6 am: 18% of 54578 checklists7 am: 21% of 92775 checklists8 am: 19% of 86962 checklists9 am: 17% of 78989 checklists10 am: 15% of 70954 checklists11 am: 14% of 59331 checklists12 pm: 13% of 50943 checklists1 pm: 13% of 49775 checklists2 pm: 13% of 49001 checklists3 pm: 12% of 43252 checklists4 pm: 11% of 33413 checklists5 pm: 9.1% of 25547 checklists6 pm: 6.3% of 18309 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (14287) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (5336) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2253) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1518) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (720) 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
January21%20%23%21%
February22%21%24%19%
March18%21%24%27%
April27%28%23%16%
May9.5%7.8%6.9%7.0%
June8.8%8.8%10%9.8%
July10%10%9.4%8.4%
August6.2%5.7%5.5%5.6%
September5.6%6.3%7.8%11%
October16%20%25%30%
November26%26%26%24%
December26%28%25%23%

Neighboring states

  • New Hampshire: arrives the second week of October, in the same week than Maine
  • Massachusetts: arrives late September, 2 weeks earlier than Maine
  • Vermont: arrives the second week of October, in the same week than Maine
  • Rhode Island: arrives late September, 2 weeks earlier than Maine

Common questions

When do Dark-eyed Juncos arrive in Maine?
Dark-eyed Juncos are in Maine all year, but most are here in winter: numbers build from the second week of October, peak in early November (27% of checklists), and fall back by mid April. In the quietest week (late August) they are still on about 5.6% of checklists.
When do Dark-eyed Juncos leave Maine?
Dark-eyed Juncos never fully leave Maine: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by mid April, but some are still reported in every week, about 5.6% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Dark-eyed Junco in Maine?
The Dark-eyed Junco is reported most often in early November, on about 27% of Maine checklists.
Where in Maine are Dark-eyed Juncos seen most often?
By county, Piscataquis County, Sagadahoc County, and Androscoggin County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Dark-eyed Junco (counties with at least 200 checklists).