WhenToBird

Sturnella magna · Icteridae

When Do Eastern Meadowlarks Arrive in Illinois?

Adult Eastern Meadowlark
Photo: Matt Schultz, CC0 1.0 via iNaturalist

Eastern Meadowlarks reach Illinois in mid February, are common by early March, peak in the second week of June (13% of checklists), and most are gone by early August.

When to look

First arrivalsFeb 15-21mid February
Common byMar 1-7early March
PeakJun 8-14the second week of June
Most gone byAug 1-7early August

Best: the second week of June. First arrivals mid February; most are gone by early August. Peak: on about 13% of Illinois checklists.

  1. Janrare
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octuncommon
  11. Novrare
  12. Decrare

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

0%5%10%15%Jan 1-7: 0.5% of 29700 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.5% of 20189 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.5% of 19784 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.6% of 26641 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.7% of 20478 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.7% of 21967 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.8% of 28735 checklistsFeb 22-28: 2.0% of 24223 checklistsMar 1-7: 4.4% of 26775 checklistsMar 8-14: 6.3% of 27579 checklistsMar 15-21: 7.6% of 27193 checklistsMar 22-31: 9.6% of 42278 checklistsApr 1-7: 11% of 34579 checklistsApr 8-14: 12% of 38290 checklistsApr 15-21: 11% of 39261 checklistsApr 22-30: 9.1% of 59584 checklistsMay 1-7: 8.9% of 60485 checklistsMay 8-14: 7.6% of 59647 checklistsMay 15-21: 8.7% of 43173 checklistsMay 22-31: 12% of 47913 checklistsJun 1-7: 13% of 31151 checklistsJun 8-14: 14% of 27692 checklistsJun 15-21: 12% of 23983 checklistsJun 22-30: 11% of 28448 checklistsJul 1-7: 11% of 21273 checklistsJul 8-14: 10% of 19284 checklistsJul 15-21: 7.9% of 17712 checklistsJul 22-31: 6.5% of 24500 checklistsAug 1-7: 4.5% of 18498 checklistsAug 8-14: 3.4% of 19331 checklistsAug 15-21: 2.3% of 19983 checklistsAug 22-31: 1.4% of 31892 checklistsSep 1-7: 1.0% of 26396 checklistsSep 8-14: 1.2% of 25011 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.5% of 23597 checklistsSep 22-30: 2.6% of 30638 checklistsOct 1-7: 3.5% of 23949 checklistsOct 8-14: 3.6% of 24412 checklistsOct 15-21: 3.0% of 22359 checklistsOct 22-31: 1.9% of 29794 checklistsNov 1-7: 1.4% of 21877 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.9% of 19742 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.6% of 18989 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.6% of 23905 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.5% of 16935 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.6% of 16687 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.5% of 20931 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.7% of 29011 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 Illinois 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 Illinois

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Jasper CountyBest the second week of April · 142 checklists that week, 1,292 in all70%
  2. Greene CountyBest the second week of June · 40 checklists that week, 329 in all57%
  3. Scott CountyBest late June · 25 checklists that week, 320 in all52%
  4. Jo Daviess CountyBest the second week of June · 101 checklists that week, 2,760 in all52%
  5. Cass CountyBest mid June · 41 checklists that week, 1,262 in all51%
  6. Hancock CountyBest early June · 22 checklists that week, 1,127 in all49%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Bartel Grassland Land and Water ReserveCook County, best early July · 41 checklists that week, 1,224 in all95%
  2. Prairie Ridge-Jasper State Natural AreaJasper County, best late March · 76 checklists that week, 405 in all91%
  3. Middle Rock River FeeLee County, best the second week of June · 24 checklists that week, 558 in all91%
  4. Wauponsee Glacial Trail 1Will County, best late June · 21 checklists that week, 153 in all90%

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

Best time of day

In Illinois, the Eastern Meadowlark is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (8.2% of those checklists).

0%5%10%12 am: too few checklists (484) to judge1 am: too few checklists (631) to judge2 am: too few checklists (485) to judge3 am: too few checklists (610) to judge4 am: too few checklists (2321) to judge5 am: too few checklists (23536) to judge6 am: 8.9% of 95511 checklists7 am: 7.8% of 164584 checklists8 am: 6.4% of 163654 checklists9 am: 5.8% of 141804 checklists10 am: 5.1% of 122882 checklists11 am: 4.6% of 100640 checklists12 pm: 4.2% of 89894 checklists1 pm: 4.1% of 82729 checklists2 pm: 4.2% of 79801 checklists3 pm: 3.9% of 82169 checklists4 pm: 4.2% of 75124 checklists5 pm: 5.2% of 57708 checklists6 pm: 6.2% of 41843 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (20943) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (6131) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1677) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (843) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (448) 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
January0.5%0.5%0.5%0.6%
February0.7%0.7%0.8%2.0%
March4.4%6.3%7.6%9.6%
April11%12%11%9.1%
May8.9%7.6%8.7%12%
June13%14%12%11%
July11%10%7.9%6.5%
August4.5%3.4%2.3%1.4%
September1.0%1.2%1.5%2.6%
October3.5%3.6%3.0%1.9%
November1.4%0.9%0.6%0.6%
December0.5%0.6%0.5%0.7%

Neighboring states

  • Indiana: arrives the second week of December, 9 weeks earlier than Illinois
  • Wisconsin: arrives early March, 2 weeks later than Illinois
  • Michigan: arrives early March, 2 weeks later than Illinois
  • Iowa: arrives early March, 2 weeks later than Illinois

Common questions

When do Eastern Meadowlarks arrive in Illinois?
Eastern Meadowlarks reach Illinois in mid February, are common by early March, peak in the second week of June (13% of checklists), and most are gone by early August.
When do Eastern Meadowlarks leave Illinois?
Most Eastern Meadowlarks have left Illinois by early August, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until early November.
When is the best time to see a Eastern Meadowlark in Illinois?
The Eastern Meadowlark is reported most often in the second week of June, on about 13% of Illinois checklists.
Where in Illinois are Eastern Meadowlarks seen most often?
By county, Jasper County, Greene County, and Scott County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Eastern Meadowlark (counties with at least 200 checklists).