WhenToBird

Junco hyemalis · Passerellidae

When Do Dark-eyed Juncos Arrive in New York?

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

Dark-eyed Juncos are in New York all year, but most are here in winter: numbers build from mid October, peak in the second week of November (39% of checklists), and fall back by mid April. In the quietest week (early September) they are still on about 3.1% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildOct 15-21mid October
PeakNov 8-14the second week of November
Fall back byApr 15-21mid April
FewestSep 1-7early September

Best: the second week of November. Here all year; numbers build from mid October and fall back by mid April. Peak: on about 39% of New York 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%10%20%30%40%Jan 1-7: 30% of 66410 checklistsJan 8-14: 30% of 49310 checklistsJan 15-21: 31% of 49919 checklistsJan 22-31: 33% of 62513 checklistsFeb 1-7: 33% of 43526 checklistsFeb 8-14: 36% of 49753 checklistsFeb 15-21: 39% of 65147 checklistsFeb 22-28: 30% of 50173 checklistsMar 1-7: 30% of 50325 checklistsMar 8-14: 30% of 55371 checklistsMar 15-21: 31% of 56293 checklistsMar 22-31: 34% of 82677 checklistsApr 1-7: 37% of 65295 checklistsApr 8-14: 34% of 73080 checklistsApr 15-21: 28% of 73857 checklistsApr 22-30: 17% of 106093 checklistsMay 1-7: 9.2% of 102772 checklistsMay 8-14: 6.8% of 110051 checklistsMay 15-21: 5.8% of 94797 checklistsMay 22-31: 6.1% of 101272 checklistsJun 1-7: 6.3% of 59471 checklistsJun 8-14: 6.8% of 55497 checklistsJun 15-21: 7.5% of 51761 checklistsJun 22-30: 7.2% of 59219 checklistsJul 1-7: 8.0% of 48226 checklistsJul 8-14: 7.1% of 42315 checklistsJul 15-21: 6.5% of 40637 checklistsJul 22-31: 5.3% of 57183 checklistsAug 1-7: 4.5% of 40461 checklistsAug 8-14: 3.8% of 39880 checklistsAug 15-21: 3.5% of 41146 checklistsAug 22-31: 3.2% of 63381 checklistsSep 1-7: 3.1% of 48640 checklistsSep 8-14: 3.1% of 47882 checklistsSep 15-21: 3.8% of 49063 checklistsSep 22-30: 6.4% of 57906 checklistsOct 1-7: 13% of 48447 checklistsOct 8-14: 21% of 51901 checklistsOct 15-21: 29% of 46717 checklistsOct 22-31: 37% of 61992 checklistsNov 1-7: 39% of 44593 checklistsNov 8-14: 40% of 42566 checklistsNov 15-21: 40% of 39675 checklistsNov 22-30: 37% of 51197 checklistsDec 1-7: 38% of 36567 checklistsDec 8-14: 37% of 37254 checklistsDec 15-21: 38% of 43754 checklistsDec 22-31: 34% of 62470 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 York 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 York

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Oneida CountyBest late January · 447 checklists that week, 24,439 in all70%
  2. Steuben CountyBest the second week of February · 219 checklists that week, 13,694 in all66%
  3. Herkimer CountyBest the second week of December · 262 checklists that week, 20,872 in all64%
  4. Columbia CountyBest early February · 416 checklists that week, 28,454 in all64%
  5. Allegany CountyBest the second week of February · 178 checklists that week, 11,955 in all63%
  6. Otsego CountyBest the second week of December · 160 checklists that week, 15,810 in all62%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. City of Saratoga Springs LandSaratoga County, best the second week of February · 36 checklists that week, 1,892 in all98%
  2. TOWN of NEW CASTLE LandWestchester County, best early January · 23 checklists that week, 586 in all95%
  3. Upper Francis PondNassau County, best mid November · 25 checklists that week, 779 in all92%
  4. Shindagin Hollow State ForestTompkins County, best mid June · 20 checklists that week, 430 in all91%

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

Best time of day

In New York, the Dark-eyed Junco is most often listed on checklists started between 7 and 9 am (27% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%12 am: too few checklists (1146) to judge1 am: too few checklists (1055) to judge2 am: too few checklists (1121) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1353) to judge4 am: too few checklists (4785) to judge5 am: too few checklists (32052) to judge6 am: 20% of 124869 checklists7 am: 28% of 298506 checklists8 am: 26% of 337334 checklists9 am: 24% of 307787 checklists10 am: 21% of 270801 checklists11 am: 20% of 233238 checklists12 pm: 20% of 213830 checklists1 pm: 19% of 193321 checklists2 pm: 19% of 180741 checklists3 pm: 18% of 170348 checklists4 pm: 15% of 147224 checklists5 pm: 12% of 111962 checklists6 pm: 9.1% of 78261 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (44425) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (15648) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (4795) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (2454) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (1378) 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
January30%30%31%33%
February33%36%39%30%
March30%30%31%34%
April37%34%28%17%
May9.2%6.8%5.8%6.1%
June6.3%6.8%7.5%7.2%
July8.0%7.1%6.5%5.3%
August4.5%3.8%3.5%3.2%
September3.1%3.1%3.8%6.4%
October13%21%29%37%
November39%40%40%37%
December38%37%38%34%

Neighboring states

  • Connecticut: arrives late September, 3 weeks earlier than New York
  • New Jersey: arrives early October, 2 weeks earlier than New York
  • Pennsylvania: arrives early October, 2 weeks earlier than New York
  • Vermont: arrives the second week of October, 1 week earlier than New York

Common questions

When do Dark-eyed Juncos arrive in New York?
Dark-eyed Juncos are in New York all year, but most are here in winter: numbers build from mid October, peak in the second week of November (39% of checklists), and fall back by mid April. In the quietest week (early September) they are still on about 3.1% of checklists.
When do Dark-eyed Juncos leave New York?
Dark-eyed Juncos never fully leave New York: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by mid April, but some are still reported in every week, about 3.1% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Dark-eyed Junco in New York?
The Dark-eyed Junco is reported most often in the second week of November, on about 39% of New York checklists.
Where in New York are Dark-eyed Juncos seen most often?
By county, Oneida County, Steuben County, and Herkimer County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Dark-eyed Junco (counties with at least 200 checklists).