WhenToBird

Junco hyemalis · Passerellidae

When Do Dark-eyed Juncos Arrive in New Hampshire?

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

Dark-eyed Juncos are in New Hampshire all year, but most are here in winter: numbers build from the second week of October, peak in the second week of February (44% of checklists), and fall back by mid April. In the quietest week (late August) they are still on about 3.0% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildOct 8-14the second week of October
PeakFeb 8-14the second week of February
Fall back byApr 15-21mid April
FewestAug 22-31late August

Best: the second week of February. Here all year; numbers build from the second week of October and fall back by mid April. Peak: on about 44% of New Hampshire checklists.

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

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

0%20%40%60%Jan 1-7: 38% of 8253 checklistsJan 8-14: 37% of 5998 checklistsJan 15-21: 43% of 5734 checklistsJan 22-31: 39% of 7776 checklistsFeb 1-7: 44% of 5253 checklistsFeb 8-14: 44% of 6802 checklistsFeb 15-21: 45% of 8852 checklistsFeb 22-28: 37% of 5792 checklistsMar 1-7: 34% of 6187 checklistsMar 8-14: 33% of 6977 checklistsMar 15-21: 32% of 7863 checklistsMar 22-31: 36% of 11746 checklistsApr 1-7: 36% of 9329 checklistsApr 8-14: 36% of 10499 checklistsApr 15-21: 30% of 10376 checklistsApr 22-30: 18% of 13086 checklistsMay 1-7: 8.2% of 13198 checklistsMay 8-14: 4.7% of 14980 checklistsMay 15-21: 3.5% of 12487 checklistsMay 22-31: 4.6% of 14294 checklistsJun 1-7: 6.1% of 8974 checklistsJun 8-14: 7.4% of 8395 checklistsJun 15-21: 8.4% of 7670 checklistsJun 22-30: 8.0% of 9188 checklistsJul 1-7: 8.8% of 7707 checklistsJul 8-14: 7.4% of 6554 checklistsJul 15-21: 6.5% of 6636 checklistsJul 22-31: 5.3% of 9599 checklistsAug 1-7: 3.5% of 6436 checklistsAug 8-14: 3.4% of 6477 checklistsAug 15-21: 2.9% of 6510 checklistsAug 22-31: 2.8% of 9762 checklistsSep 1-7: 3.3% of 6700 checklistsSep 8-14: 3.9% of 6012 checklistsSep 15-21: 5.5% of 6238 checklistsSep 22-30: 8.6% of 7619 checklistsOct 1-7: 17% of 6702 checklistsOct 8-14: 27% of 6863 checklistsOct 15-21: 34% of 6284 checklistsOct 22-31: 41% of 8287 checklistsNov 1-7: 37% of 7584 checklistsNov 8-14: 38% of 6056 checklistsNov 15-21: 40% of 5597 checklistsNov 22-30: 39% of 7140 checklistsDec 1-7: 42% of 4623 checklistsDec 8-14: 41% of 4920 checklistsDec 15-21: 43% of 6416 checklistsDec 22-31: 42% of 7659 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 New Hampshire 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 New Hampshire

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Cheshire CountyBest mid December · 1418 checklists that week, 39,834 in all59%
  2. Hillsborough CountyBest the second week of February · 1125 checklists that week, 50,125 in all56%
  3. Merrimack CountyBest late November · 623 checklists that week, 36,980 in all51%
  4. Strafford CountyBest the second week of February · 861 checklists that week, 41,888 in all48%
  5. Carroll CountyBest late October · 711 checklists that week, 30,580 in all46%
  6. Coos CountyBest mid October · 391 checklists that week, 27,719 in all43%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Sucker Brook CoveCheshire County, best early February · 20 checklists that week, 481 in all98%
  2. Great Gulf Ext. Roadless AreaCoos County, best the second week of July · 24 checklists that week, 257 in all95%
  3. Father Lawless Fields Town ParkStrafford County, best late January · 21 checklists that week, 1,274 in all92%
  4. Hale CoveCarroll County, best the second week of November · 57 checklists that week, 2,611 in all91%
  5. Franconia Notch State ParkGrafton County, best early July · 30 checklists that week, 344 in all88%

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

Best time of day

In New Hampshire, the Dark-eyed Junco is most often listed on checklists started between 7 and 9 am (29% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%12 am: too few checklists (219) to judge1 am: too few checklists (192) to judge2 am: too few checklists (176) to judge3 am: too few checklists (234) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1042) to judge5 am: too few checklists (6352) to judge6 am: 20% of 23140 checklists7 am: 30% of 43401 checklists8 am: 28% of 48039 checklists9 am: 26% of 43328 checklists10 am: 23% of 37073 checklists11 am: 22% of 32028 checklists12 pm: 22% of 27396 checklists1 pm: 21% of 25182 checklists2 pm: 21% of 24318 checklists3 pm: 20% of 21974 checklists4 pm: 14% of 17958 checklists5 pm: 10% of 14528 checklists6 pm: 6.6% of 9144 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (5341) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (1845) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (578) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (346) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (256) 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
January38%37%43%39%
February44%44%45%37%
March34%33%32%36%
April36%36%30%18%
May8.2%4.7%3.5%4.6%
June6.1%7.4%8.4%8.0%
July8.8%7.4%6.5%5.3%
August3.5%3.4%2.9%2.8%
September3.3%3.9%5.5%8.6%
October17%27%34%41%
November37%38%40%39%
December42%41%43%42%

Neighboring states

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

Common questions

When do Dark-eyed Juncos arrive in New Hampshire?
Dark-eyed Juncos are in New Hampshire all year, but most are here in winter: numbers build from the second week of October, peak in the second week of February (44% of checklists), and fall back by mid April. In the quietest week (late August) they are still on about 3.0% of checklists.
When do Dark-eyed Juncos leave New Hampshire?
Dark-eyed Juncos never fully leave New Hampshire: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by mid April, but some are still reported in every week, about 3.0% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Dark-eyed Junco in New Hampshire?
The Dark-eyed Junco is reported most often in the second week of February, on about 44% of New Hampshire checklists.
Where in New Hampshire are Dark-eyed Juncos seen most often?
By county, Cheshire County, Hillsborough County, and Merrimack County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Dark-eyed Junco (counties with at least 200 checklists).