WhenToBird

Nannopterum auritum · Phalacrocoracidae

When Do Double-crested Cormorants Arrive in Virginia?

Adult Double-crested Cormorant
Photo: jubileej, CC0 1.0 via iNaturalist

Double-crested Cormorants are in Virginia all year, but most are here in spring: numbers build from early March, peak in early April (18% of checklists), and fall back by late April. In the quietest week (mid June) they are still on about 6.1% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildMar 1-7early March
PeakApr 1-7early April
Fall back byApr 22-30late April
FewestJun 15-21mid June

Best: early April. Here all year; numbers build from early March and fall back by late April. Peak: on about 18% of Virginia checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maycommon
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%5%10%15%20%Jan 1-7: 13% of 32817 checklistsJan 8-14: 13% of 25111 checklistsJan 15-21: 14% of 25510 checklistsJan 22-31: 14% of 34492 checklistsFeb 1-7: 14% of 24950 checklistsFeb 8-14: 11% of 28224 checklistsFeb 15-21: 9.8% of 43578 checklistsFeb 22-28: 14% of 26467 checklistsMar 1-7: 14% of 25851 checklistsMar 8-14: 14% of 25901 checklistsMar 15-21: 16% of 26747 checklistsMar 22-31: 18% of 40819 checklistsApr 1-7: 19% of 31351 checklistsApr 8-14: 18% of 33239 checklistsApr 15-21: 16% of 37284 checklistsApr 22-30: 13% of 54364 checklistsMay 1-7: 11% of 47698 checklistsMay 8-14: 9.6% of 46174 checklistsMay 15-21: 9.8% of 36444 checklistsMay 22-31: 8.4% of 43203 checklistsJun 1-7: 6.7% of 28503 checklistsJun 8-14: 6.2% of 25485 checklistsJun 15-21: 6.1% of 23728 checklistsJun 22-30: 6.0% of 28785 checklistsJul 1-7: 6.6% of 22294 checklistsJul 8-14: 7.4% of 20481 checklistsJul 15-21: 8.3% of 18914 checklistsJul 22-31: 9.3% of 26976 checklistsAug 1-7: 11% of 19555 checklistsAug 8-14: 12% of 18744 checklistsAug 15-21: 13% of 18721 checklistsAug 22-31: 13% of 28763 checklistsSep 1-7: 14% of 23594 checklistsSep 8-14: 15% of 22581 checklistsSep 15-21: 14% of 23036 checklistsSep 22-30: 14% of 29687 checklistsOct 1-7: 15% of 24321 checklistsOct 8-14: 14% of 23946 checklistsOct 15-21: 15% of 22191 checklistsOct 22-31: 16% of 30161 checklistsNov 1-7: 17% of 21431 checklistsNov 8-14: 19% of 22758 checklistsNov 15-21: 16% of 19988 checklistsNov 22-30: 16% of 27665 checklistsDec 1-7: 14% of 19324 checklistsDec 8-14: 13% of 20316 checklistsDec 15-21: 12% of 25675 checklistsDec 22-31: 13% of 38677 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 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.

Embed this map on your site

Where in Virginia

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Hopewell CountyBest mid November · 75 checklists that week, 3,116 in all93%
  2. Poquoson CountyBest late August · 54 checklists that week, 2,669 in all71%
  3. King William CountyBest the second week of December · 24 checklists that week, 2,070 in all66%
  4. Colonial Heights CountyBest late March · 49 checklists that week, 889 in all62%
  5. Norfolk CountyBest the second week of November · 318 checklists that week, 21,204 in all61%
  6. Surry CountyBest the second week of March · 77 checklists that week, 2,669 in all58%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. John H. Kerr ReservoirMecklenburg County, best late January · 31 checklists that week, 612 in all100%
  2. City ParkHopewell County, best late March · 49 checklists that week, 1,971 in all99%
  3. Aquia Landing ParkStafford County, best early December · 22 checklists that week, 1,076 in all99%
  4. Back CovePoquoson County, best early September · 23 checklists that week, 1,001 in all98%
  5. First Landing State ParkVirginia Beach County, best late February · 30 checklists that week, 1,768 in all98%
  6. South Thimble IslandVirginia Beach County, best mid January · 30 checklists that week, 629 in all97%

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

Best time of day

In Virginia, the Double-crested Cormorant is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (16% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%20%12 am: too few checklists (485) to judge1 am: too few checklists (488) to judge2 am: too few checklists (423) to judge3 am: too few checklists (565) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1410) to judge5 am: too few checklists (10265) to judge6 am: 19% of 64788 checklists7 am: 15% of 169128 checklists8 am: 13% of 180748 checklists9 am: 12% of 153462 checklists10 am: 13% of 128966 checklists11 am: 13% of 104204 checklists12 pm: 12% of 91604 checklists1 pm: 13% of 85547 checklists2 pm: 13% of 82355 checklists3 pm: 12% of 82265 checklists4 pm: 11% of 76714 checklists5 pm: 9.8% of 56782 checklists6 pm: 7.7% of 40131 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (24290) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (7744) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2383) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1122) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (651) 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%13%14%14%
February14%11%9.8%14%
March14%14%16%18%
April19%18%16%13%
May11%9.6%9.8%8.4%
June6.7%6.2%6.1%6.0%
July6.6%7.4%8.3%9.3%
August11%12%13%13%
September14%15%14%14%
October15%14%15%16%
November17%19%16%16%
December14%13%12%13%

Neighboring states

Common questions

When do Double-crested Cormorants arrive in Virginia?
Double-crested Cormorants are in Virginia all year, but most are here in spring: numbers build from early March, peak in early April (18% of checklists), and fall back by late April. In the quietest week (mid June) they are still on about 6.1% of checklists.
When do Double-crested Cormorants leave Virginia?
Double-crested Cormorants never fully leave Virginia: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by late April, but some are still reported in every week, about 6.1% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Double-crested Cormorant in Virginia?
The Double-crested Cormorant is reported most often in early April, on about 18% of Virginia checklists.
Where in Virginia are Double-crested Cormorants seen most often?
By county, Hopewell County, Poquoson County, and King William County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Double-crested Cormorant (counties with at least 200 checklists).