WhenToBird

Junco hyemalis · Passerellidae

When Do Dark-eyed Juncos Arrive in Mississippi?

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

Dark-eyed Juncos are winter birds in Mississippi: the first arrive in late October, they are common by the second week of November, peak in the second week of February (18% of checklists), and most are gone by mid March.

When to look

First arrivalsOct 22-31late October
Common byNov 8-14the second week of November
PeakFeb 8-14the second week of February
Most gone byMar 15-21mid March

Best: the second week of February. First arrivals late October; most are gone by mid March. Peak: on about 18% of Mississippi 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. Decpeak season

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

0%10%20%30%Jan 1-7: 13% of 4836 checklistsJan 8-14: 14% of 3323 checklistsJan 15-21: 17% of 3400 checklistsJan 22-31: 14% of 4705 checklistsFeb 1-7: 14% of 3387 checklistsFeb 8-14: 18% of 3911 checklistsFeb 15-21: 21% of 4691 checklistsFeb 22-28: 14% of 3409 checklistsMar 1-7: 15% of 3276 checklistsMar 8-14: 14% of 3273 checklistsMar 15-21: 11% of 3552 checklistsMar 22-31: 7.3% of 5618 checklistsApr 1-7: 2.4% of 4432 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.8% of 4907 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.3% of 5239 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.1% of 7043 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.1% of 4597 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.1% of 4383 checklistsMay 15-21: 0% of 3088 checklistsMay 22-31: 0% of 3805 checklistsJun 1-7: 0% of 2658 checklistsJun 8-14: 0% of 2469 checklistsJun 15-21: 0% of 2112 checklistsJun 22-30: 0% of 2534 checklistsJul 1-7: 0% of 2099 checklistsJul 8-14: 0% of 1885 checklistsJul 15-21: 0% of 1811 checklistsJul 22-31: 0% of 2793 checklistsAug 1-7: 0% of 2045 checklistsAug 8-14: 0% of 2210 checklistsAug 15-21: 0% of 2437 checklistsAug 22-31: 0% of 3415 checklistsSep 1-7: 0% of 2837 checklistsSep 8-14: 0% of 2585 checklistsSep 15-21: 0% of 2870 checklistsSep 22-30: 0% of 3610 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.1% of 2938 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.2% of 3457 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.4% of 3168 checklistsOct 22-31: 2.2% of 3752 checklistsNov 1-7: 5.6% of 2847 checklistsNov 8-14: 9.7% of 2648 checklistsNov 15-21: 9.6% of 2599 checklistsNov 22-30: 14% of 3389 checklistsDec 1-7: 13% of 2419 checklistsDec 8-14: 13% of 2526 checklistsDec 15-21: 14% of 2966 checklistsDec 22-31: 16% of 4466 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 Mississippi 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 Mississippi

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Union CountyBest late January · 13 checklists that week, 508 in all75%
  2. DeSoto CountyBest the second week of February · 107 checklists that week, 5,093 in all74%
  3. Lafayette CountyBest the second week of January · 76 checklists that week, 4,770 in all61%
  4. Alcorn CountyBest mid February · 16 checklists that week, 330 in all58%
  5. Itawamba CountyBest late January · 23 checklists that week, 648 in all58%
  6. Tishomingo CountyBest mid January · 108 checklists that week, 4,558 in all55%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Lefleur's Bluff State ParkHinds County, best late December · 26 checklists that week, 1,235 in all55%
  2. Damsite Recreation AreaTishomingo County, best late January · 20 checklists that week, 376 in all53%
  3. Natchez Trace ParkwayTishomingo County, best late November · 21 checklists that week, 956 in all35%
  4. Bonita ReservoirLauderdale County, best late December · 21 checklists that week, 304 in all29%
  5. Dickerson ArmNoxubee County, best late November · 20 checklists that week, 776 in all15%

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

Best time of day

In Mississippi, the Dark-eyed Junco is most often listed on checklists started between 7 and 9 am (8.2% of those checklists).

0%5%10%12 am: too few checklists (54) to judge1 am: too few checklists (48) to judge2 am: too few checklists (28) to judge3 am: too few checklists (60) to judge4 am: too few checklists (114) to judge5 am: too few checklists (1139) to judge6 am: 6.3% of 9054 checklists7 am: 8.2% of 18481 checklists8 am: 8.3% of 17525 checklists9 am: 7.1% of 15482 checklists10 am: 6.5% of 14380 checklists11 am: 6.2% of 12728 checklists12 pm: 6.7% of 11009 checklists1 pm: 5.9% of 10651 checklists2 pm: 6.1% of 10787 checklists3 pm: 6.6% of 11221 checklists4 pm: 4.3% of 11861 checklists5 pm: 1.8% of 8854 checklists6 pm: 0.4% of 6018 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (2387) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (314) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (114) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (63) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (48) 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
January13%14%17%14%
February14%18%21%14%
March15%14%11%7.3%
April2.4%0.8%0.3%0.1%
May0.1%0.1%0%0%
June0%0%0%0%
July0%0%0%0%
August0%0%0%0%
September0%0%0%0%
October0.1%0.2%0.4%2.2%
November5.6%9.7%9.6%14%
December13%13%14%16%

Neighboring states

  • Alabama: arrives late October, in the same week than Mississippi
  • Louisiana: arrives late October, in the same week than Mississippi
  • Arkansas: arrives mid October, 1 week earlier than Mississippi
  • Georgia: arrives late October, in the same week than Mississippi

Common questions

When do Dark-eyed Juncos arrive in Mississippi?
Dark-eyed Juncos are winter birds in Mississippi: the first arrive in late October, they are common by the second week of November, peak in the second week of February (18% of checklists), and most are gone by mid March.
When do Dark-eyed Juncos leave Mississippi?
Most Dark-eyed Juncos have left Mississippi by mid March, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until early April.
When is the best time to see a Dark-eyed Junco in Mississippi?
The Dark-eyed Junco is reported most often in the second week of February, on about 18% of Mississippi checklists.
Where in Mississippi are Dark-eyed Juncos seen most often?
By county, Union County, DeSoto County, and Lafayette County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Dark-eyed Junco (counties with at least 200 checklists).