WhenToBird

Sialia sialis · Turdidae

When Do Eastern Bluebirds Arrive in Maine?

Adult male Eastern Bluebird
Photo: Dan Vickers, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Eastern Bluebirds are in Maine all year, but most are here in spring: numbers build from early February, peak in late March (15% of checklists), and fall back by mid May. In the quietest week (mid August) they are still on about 5.8% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildFeb 1-7early February
PeakMar 22-31late March
Fall back byMay 15-21mid May
FewestAug 15-21mid August

Best: late March. Here all year; numbers build from early February and fall back by mid May. Peak: on about 15% of Maine checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Deccommon

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

0%5%10%15%20%Jan 1-7: 10% of 15499 checklistsJan 8-14: 9.4% of 11141 checklistsJan 15-21: 9.6% of 10729 checklistsJan 22-31: 9.8% of 15084 checklistsFeb 1-7: 11% of 9403 checklistsFeb 8-14: 12% of 11268 checklistsFeb 15-21: 15% of 14061 checklistsFeb 22-28: 13% of 9977 checklistsMar 1-7: 13% of 9649 checklistsMar 8-14: 15% of 11781 checklistsMar 15-21: 16% of 11613 checklistsMar 22-31: 16% of 17798 checklistsApr 1-7: 15% of 14638 checklistsApr 8-14: 16% of 16511 checklistsApr 15-21: 15% of 17164 checklistsApr 22-30: 15% of 22602 checklistsMay 1-7: 15% of 22556 checklistsMay 8-14: 14% of 27842 checklistsMay 15-21: 12% of 27748 checklistsMay 22-31: 11% of 38715 checklistsJun 1-7: 8.7% of 26916 checklistsJun 8-14: 8.4% of 23737 checklistsJun 15-21: 7.9% of 22733 checklistsJun 22-30: 7.7% of 28248 checklistsJul 1-7: 7.9% of 20290 checklistsJul 8-14: 7.6% of 18534 checklistsJul 15-21: 7.0% of 17319 checklistsJul 22-31: 6.7% of 22815 checklistsAug 1-7: 6.5% of 15004 checklistsAug 8-14: 5.6% of 14603 checklistsAug 15-21: 5.6% of 14972 checklistsAug 22-31: 6.1% of 19813 checklistsSep 1-7: 6.2% of 14567 checklistsSep 8-14: 6.8% of 14520 checklistsSep 15-21: 7.7% of 14339 checklistsSep 22-30: 9.6% of 16879 checklistsOct 1-7: 12% of 12959 checklistsOct 8-14: 12% of 13168 checklistsOct 15-21: 14% of 11184 checklistsOct 22-31: 14% of 13717 checklistsNov 1-7: 14% of 9823 checklistsNov 8-14: 12% of 9007 checklistsNov 15-21: 12% of 8528 checklistsNov 22-30: 11% of 10228 checklistsDec 1-7: 11% of 7505 checklistsDec 8-14: 12% of 7982 checklistsDec 15-21: 11% of 10455 checklistsDec 22-31: 11% of 14285 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 Maine 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 Maine

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. York CountyBest mid March · 1330 checklists that week, 101,844 in all27%
  2. Lincoln CountyBest the second week of April · 1034 checklists that week, 59,429 in all26%
  3. Cumberland CountyBest mid March · 3193 checklists that week, 169,501 in all26%
  4. Androscoggin CountyBest late February · 323 checklists that week, 16,955 in all16%
  5. Sagadahoc CountyBest late February · 283 checklists that week, 21,736 in all14%
  6. Knox CountyBest early April · 504 checklists that week, 34,453 in all14%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Green Point Wildlife Management AreaLincoln County, best late October · 20 checklists that week, 1,082 in all82%
  2. Gisland Farm Audubon CenterCumberland County, best the second week of March · 71 checklists that week, 4,957 in all81%
  3. Great Salt Bay FarmLincoln County, best mid March · 41 checklists that week, 1,776 in all80%
  4. Hogdon CoveLincoln County, best late May · 20 checklists that week, 300 in all78%
  5. River Point Conservation AreaCumberland County, best late April · 54 checklists that week, 1,146 in all77%
  6. Crystal Spring Farm South (Linnhaven West)Cumberland County, best early June · 59 checklists that week, 228 in all76%

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

Best time of day

In Maine, the Eastern Bluebird is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (15% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%20%12 am: too few checklists (510) to judge1 am: too few checklists (517) to judge2 am: too few checklists (581) to judge3 am: too few checklists (3242) to judge4 am: too few checklists (7221) to judge5 am: 11% of 19895 checklists6 am: 14% of 54578 checklists7 am: 16% of 92775 checklists8 am: 14% of 86962 checklists9 am: 12% of 78989 checklists10 am: 10% of 70954 checklists11 am: 8.8% of 59331 checklists12 pm: 8.8% of 50943 checklists1 pm: 8.5% of 49775 checklists2 pm: 8.3% of 49001 checklists3 pm: 7.8% of 43252 checklists4 pm: 8.0% of 33413 checklists5 pm: 9.0% of 25547 checklists6 pm: 8.3% of 18309 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (14287) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (5336) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2253) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1518) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (720) 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
January10%9.4%9.6%9.8%
February11%12%15%13%
March13%15%16%16%
April15%16%15%15%
May15%14%12%11%
June8.7%8.4%7.9%7.7%
July7.9%7.6%7.0%6.7%
August6.5%5.6%5.6%6.1%
September6.2%6.8%7.7%9.6%
October12%12%14%14%
November14%12%12%11%
December11%12%11%11%

Neighboring states

Common questions

When do Eastern Bluebirds arrive in Maine?
Eastern Bluebirds are in Maine all year, but most are here in spring: numbers build from early February, peak in late March (15% of checklists), and fall back by mid May. In the quietest week (mid August) they are still on about 5.8% of checklists.
When do Eastern Bluebirds leave Maine?
Eastern Bluebirds never fully leave Maine: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by mid May, but some are still reported in every week, about 5.8% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Eastern Bluebird in Maine?
The Eastern Bluebird is reported most often in late March, on about 15% of Maine checklists.
Where in Maine are Eastern Bluebirds seen most often?
By county, York County, Lincoln County, and Cumberland County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Eastern Bluebird (counties with at least 200 checklists).