WhenToBird

Dryobates pubescens · Picidae

When Do Downy Woodpeckers Arrive in Montana?

Adult female Downy Woodpecker
Photo: joy4birds, CC0 1.0 via iNaturalist

Downy Woodpeckers are in Montana all year, but most are here in winter: numbers build from late October, peak in early December (21% of checklists), and fall back by late March. In the quietest week (mid June) they are still on about 5.9% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildOct 22-31late October
PeakDec 1-7early December
Fall back byMar 22-31late March
FewestJun 15-21mid June

Best: early December. Here all year; numbers build from late October and fall back by late March. Peak: on about 21% of Montana checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maycommon
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%10%20%30%Jan 1-7: 19% of 7987 checklistsJan 8-14: 20% of 5561 checklistsJan 15-21: 19% of 5613 checklistsJan 22-31: 19% of 7881 checklistsFeb 1-7: 20% of 5018 checklistsFeb 8-14: 20% of 5598 checklistsFeb 15-21: 20% of 7247 checklistsFeb 22-28: 19% of 5531 checklistsMar 1-7: 17% of 6110 checklistsMar 8-14: 16% of 6623 checklistsMar 15-21: 14% of 7687 checklistsMar 22-31: 14% of 11095 checklistsApr 1-7: 13% of 7774 checklistsApr 8-14: 12% of 8785 checklistsApr 15-21: 11% of 9684 checklistsApr 22-30: 12% of 13805 checklistsMay 1-7: 12% of 11847 checklistsMay 8-14: 12% of 13547 checklistsMay 15-21: 12% of 13019 checklistsMay 22-31: 9.0% of 20456 checklistsJun 1-7: 6.5% of 12993 checklistsJun 8-14: 5.3% of 11594 checklistsJun 15-21: 6.0% of 11159 checklistsJun 22-30: 6.2% of 13786 checklistsJul 1-7: 6.4% of 9584 checklistsJul 8-14: 7.1% of 9078 checklistsJul 15-21: 8.1% of 7905 checklistsJul 22-31: 8.9% of 10906 checklistsAug 1-7: 10% of 7335 checklistsAug 8-14: 11% of 6868 checklistsAug 15-21: 12% of 6866 checklistsAug 22-31: 14% of 10076 checklistsSep 1-7: 15% of 7670 checklistsSep 8-14: 15% of 7490 checklistsSep 15-21: 13% of 6804 checklistsSep 22-30: 12% of 8016 checklistsOct 1-7: 12% of 5996 checklistsOct 8-14: 12% of 6156 checklistsOct 15-21: 12% of 5742 checklistsOct 22-31: 14% of 7790 checklistsNov 1-7: 16% of 5353 checklistsNov 8-14: 17% of 5475 checklistsNov 15-21: 19% of 4603 checklistsNov 22-30: 20% of 6067 checklistsDec 1-7: 21% of 4362 checklistsDec 8-14: 21% of 4467 checklistsDec 15-21: 20% of 5328 checklistsDec 22-31: 21% of 6672 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 Montana 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 Montana

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Valley CountyBest mid January · 21 checklists that week, 3,392 in all59%
  2. Stillwater CountyBest mid November · 17 checklists that week, 2,184 in all45%
  3. Musselshell CountyBest early April · 14 checklists that week, 961 in all43%
  4. Sweet Grass CountyBest mid February · 10 checklists that week, 1,532 in all39%
  5. Jefferson CountyBest the second week of February · 239 checklists that week, 14,859 in all37%
  6. Ravalli CountyBest late November · 281 checklists that week, 16,671 in all37%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Nature ParkLewis and Clark County, best early May · 44 checklists that week, 1,111 in all72%
  2. Drouillard Fishing Access SiteGallatin County, best late January · 22 checklists that week, 273 in all72%
  3. Tower Street Conservation Area (Wilbert Property)Missoula County, best early October · 22 checklists that week, 1,102 in all60%
  4. Creekwood Subdvision Public ParkGallatin County, best late May · 24 checklists that week, 193 in all60%
  5. East Gallatin Recreation Area (Bridger Creek)Gallatin County, best mid August · 20 checklists that week, 988 in all60%
  6. Story Mill ParkGallatin County, best mid January · 49 checklists that week, 1,670 in all58%

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

Best time of day

In Montana, the Downy Woodpecker 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 (183) to judge1 am: too few checklists (169) to judge2 am: too few checklists (163) to judge3 am: too few checklists (212) to judge4 am: too few checklists (503) to judge5 am: too few checklists (4022) to judge6 am: 16% of 12719 checklists7 am: 21% of 31202 checklists8 am: 21% of 47646 checklists9 am: 16% of 44624 checklists10 am: 13% of 40704 checklists11 am: 11% of 33825 checklists12 pm: 10% of 29407 checklists1 pm: 9.9% of 27959 checklists2 pm: 9.7% of 26928 checklists3 pm: 9.3% of 25313 checklists4 pm: 8.4% of 22151 checklists5 pm: 8.5% of 16884 checklists6 pm: 7.6% of 13780 checklists7 pm: 6.1% of 9926 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (5765) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2099) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (595) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (230) 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
January19%20%19%19%
February20%20%20%19%
March17%16%14%14%
April13%12%11%12%
May12%12%12%9.0%
June6.5%5.3%6.0%6.2%
July6.4%7.1%8.1%8.9%
August10%11%12%14%
September15%15%13%12%
October12%12%12%14%
November16%17%19%20%
December21%21%20%21%

Neighboring states

  • Idaho: arrives early November, 1 week later than Montana
  • Wyoming: arrives the second week of July, 14 weeks earlier than Montana
  • Utah: arrives mid August, 9 weeks earlier than Montana
  • Washington: year-round, peaks mid December

Common questions

When do Downy Woodpeckers arrive in Montana?
Downy Woodpeckers are in Montana all year, but most are here in winter: numbers build from late October, peak in early December (21% of checklists), and fall back by late March. In the quietest week (mid June) they are still on about 5.9% of checklists.
When do Downy Woodpeckers leave Montana?
Downy Woodpeckers never fully leave Montana: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by late March, but some are still reported in every week, about 5.9% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Downy Woodpecker in Montana?
The Downy Woodpecker is reported most often in early December, on about 21% of Montana checklists.
Where in Montana are Downy Woodpeckers seen most often?
By county, Valley County, Stillwater County, and Musselshell County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Downy Woodpecker (counties with at least 200 checklists).