WhenToBird

Junco hyemalis · Passerellidae

When Do Dark-eyed Juncos Arrive in West Virginia?

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

Dark-eyed Juncos are in West Virginia all year, but most are here in winter: numbers build from early November, peak in mid January (36% of checklists), and fall back by early April. In the quietest week (late August) they are still on about 2.7% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildNov 1-7early November
PeakJan 15-21mid January
Fall back byApr 1-7early April
FewestAug 22-31late August

Best: mid January. Here all year; numbers build from early November and fall back by early April. Peak: on about 36% of West Virginia checklists.

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

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

0%10%20%30%40%Jan 1-7: 32% of 4227 checklistsJan 8-14: 35% of 3147 checklistsJan 15-21: 40% of 3410 checklistsJan 22-31: 33% of 4248 checklistsFeb 1-7: 32% of 3150 checklistsFeb 8-14: 34% of 3653 checklistsFeb 15-21: 32% of 5140 checklistsFeb 22-28: 25% of 3846 checklistsMar 1-7: 28% of 3901 checklistsMar 8-14: 29% of 3820 checklistsMar 15-21: 29% of 3781 checklistsMar 22-31: 31% of 5705 checklistsApr 1-7: 29% of 4529 checklistsApr 8-14: 21% of 4935 checklistsApr 15-21: 9.5% of 5429 checklistsApr 22-30: 3.9% of 8015 checklistsMay 1-7: 3.2% of 7421 checklistsMay 8-14: 3.3% of 6910 checklistsMay 15-21: 4.5% of 5596 checklistsMay 22-31: 5.6% of 6884 checklistsJun 1-7: 6.8% of 4123 checklistsJun 8-14: 6.7% of 3957 checklistsJun 15-21: 6.8% of 3863 checklistsJun 22-30: 6.2% of 4217 checklistsJul 1-7: 6.6% of 3491 checklistsJul 8-14: 3.7% of 3044 checklistsJul 15-21: 4.3% of 3095 checklistsJul 22-31: 5.4% of 4120 checklistsAug 1-7: 3.2% of 3009 checklistsAug 8-14: 4.3% of 3007 checklistsAug 15-21: 2.0% of 2905 checklistsAug 22-31: 2.9% of 4312 checklistsSep 1-7: 3.0% of 3429 checklistsSep 8-14: 2.6% of 3217 checklistsSep 15-21: 3.5% of 3285 checklistsSep 22-30: 3.4% of 4067 checklistsOct 1-7: 4.6% of 3380 checklistsOct 8-14: 5.8% of 3460 checklistsOct 15-21: 8.9% of 3129 checklistsOct 22-31: 16% of 3881 checklistsNov 1-7: 26% of 3084 checklistsNov 8-14: 27% of 2869 checklistsNov 15-21: 30% of 2484 checklistsNov 22-30: 32% of 3663 checklistsDec 1-7: 32% of 2574 checklistsDec 8-14: 33% of 2680 checklistsDec 15-21: 36% of 3792 checklistsDec 22-31: 32% of 4236 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 West Virginia 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 West Virginia

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Marshall CountyBest late November · 14 checklists that week, 895 in all84%
  2. Ritchie CountyBest late January · 122 checklists that week, 3,552 in all74%
  3. Randolph CountyBest the second week of January · 107 checklists that week, 6,495 in all66%
  4. Hampshire CountyBest late February · 19 checklists that week, 1,678 in all61%
  5. Morgan CountyBest early February · 13 checklists that week, 1,968 in all61%
  6. Jefferson CountyBest late January · 394 checklists that week, 18,557 in all60%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Cathedral State ParkPreston County, best mid May · 26 checklists that week, 224 in all71%
  2. Potts Creek Wildlife Management AreaMonroe County, best late September · 25 checklists that week, 217 in all66%
  3. Blackwater Falls State ParkTucker County, best early July · 21 checklists that week, 467 in all65%
  4. Dolly Sods Scenic AreaGrant County, best late September · 28 checklists that week, 194 in all65%
  5. Ohio River Islands National Wildlife RefugeWood County, best late January · 54 checklists that week, 1,994 in all63%

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

Best time of day

In West Virginia, the Dark-eyed Junco is most often listed on checklists started between 7 and 9 am (21% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%12 am: too few checklists (65) to judge1 am: too few checklists (47) to judge2 am: too few checklists (46) to judge3 am: too few checklists (49) to judge4 am: too few checklists (140) to judge5 am: too few checklists (952) to judge6 am: 11% of 5860 checklists7 am: 22% of 18233 checklists8 am: 21% of 24468 checklists9 am: 18% of 22542 checklists10 am: 17% of 19537 checklists11 am: 16% of 16362 checklists12 pm: 16% of 14819 checklists1 pm: 17% of 12772 checklists2 pm: 16% of 11765 checklists3 pm: 15% of 12579 checklists4 pm: 15% of 11463 checklists5 pm: 9.4% of 9409 checklists6 pm: 4.7% of 6557 checklists7 pm: 3.3% of 4256 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (1589) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (377) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (147) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (86) 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
January32%35%40%33%
February32%34%32%25%
March28%29%29%31%
April29%21%9.5%3.9%
May3.2%3.3%4.5%5.6%
June6.8%6.7%6.8%6.2%
July6.6%3.7%4.3%5.4%
August3.2%4.3%2.0%2.9%
September3.0%2.6%3.5%3.4%
October4.6%5.8%8.9%16%
November26%27%30%32%
December32%33%36%32%

Neighboring states

  • Virginia: arrives the second week of October, 3 weeks earlier than West Virginia
  • District of Columbia: arrives early October, 4 weeks earlier than West Virginia
  • Maryland: arrives the second week of October, 3 weeks earlier than West Virginia
  • Ohio: arrives early October, 4 weeks earlier than West Virginia

Common questions

When do Dark-eyed Juncos arrive in West Virginia?
Dark-eyed Juncos are in West Virginia all year, but most are here in winter: numbers build from early November, peak in mid January (36% of checklists), and fall back by early April. In the quietest week (late August) they are still on about 2.7% of checklists.
When do Dark-eyed Juncos leave West Virginia?
Dark-eyed Juncos never fully leave West Virginia: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by early April, but some are still reported in every week, about 2.7% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Dark-eyed Junco in West Virginia?
The Dark-eyed Junco is reported most often in mid January, on about 36% of West Virginia checklists.
Where in West Virginia are Dark-eyed Juncos seen most often?
By county, Marshall County, Ritchie County, and Randolph County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Dark-eyed Junco (counties with at least 200 checklists).