WhenToBird

Sturnella magna · Icteridae

When Do Eastern Meadowlarks Arrive in Kansas?

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

Eastern Meadowlarks are in Kansas all year, but most are here in spring: numbers build from mid March, peak in early June (25% of checklists), and fall back by late July. In the quietest week (the second week of September) they are still on about 2.4% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildMar 15-21mid March
PeakJun 1-7early June
Fall back byJul 22-31late July
FewestSep 8-14the second week of September

Best: early June. Here all year; numbers build from mid March and fall back by late July. Peak: on about 25% of Kansas checklists.

  1. Janrare
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novuncommon
  12. Decuncommon

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

0%10%20%30%Jan 1-7: 3.5% of 8683 checklistsJan 8-14: 2.9% of 5710 checklistsJan 15-21: 3.0% of 5453 checklistsJan 22-31: 3.0% of 7868 checklistsFeb 1-7: 4.9% of 5579 checklistsFeb 8-14: 3.2% of 6307 checklistsFeb 15-21: 3.9% of 7830 checklistsFeb 22-28: 6.6% of 6124 checklistsMar 1-7: 8.7% of 6442 checklistsMar 8-14: 14% of 6925 checklistsMar 15-21: 16% of 7257 checklistsMar 22-31: 21% of 11527 checklistsApr 1-7: 20% of 8908 checklistsApr 8-14: 21% of 11070 checklistsApr 15-21: 22% of 11050 checklistsApr 22-30: 20% of 16381 checklistsMay 1-7: 18% of 15899 checklistsMay 8-14: 18% of 15349 checklistsMay 15-21: 21% of 10474 checklistsMay 22-31: 24% of 11264 checklistsJun 1-7: 26% of 6783 checklistsJun 8-14: 23% of 5654 checklistsJun 15-21: 22% of 4716 checklistsJun 22-30: 21% of 6232 checklistsJul 1-7: 21% of 5073 checklistsJul 8-14: 20% of 4528 checklistsJul 15-21: 18% of 4210 checklistsJul 22-31: 15% of 5986 checklistsAug 1-7: 9.8% of 4661 checklistsAug 8-14: 7.1% of 4762 checklistsAug 15-21: 5.1% of 4823 checklistsAug 22-31: 3.4% of 7214 checklistsSep 1-7: 2.2% of 5989 checklistsSep 8-14: 1.9% of 5549 checklistsSep 15-21: 3.1% of 5255 checklistsSep 22-30: 5.5% of 7370 checklistsOct 1-7: 10% of 5829 checklistsOct 8-14: 11% of 6183 checklistsOct 15-21: 11% of 5504 checklistsOct 22-31: 8.4% of 7289 checklistsNov 1-7: 7.6% of 5535 checklistsNov 8-14: 6.6% of 5462 checklistsNov 15-21: 4.6% of 4929 checklistsNov 22-30: 4.6% of 6627 checklistsDec 1-7: 3.1% of 4670 checklistsDec 8-14: 3.2% of 4805 checklistsDec 15-21: 3.0% of 6341 checklistsDec 22-31: 3.0% of 8186 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 Kansas 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 Kansas

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Greenwood CountyBest mid June · 34 checklists that week, 611 in all75%
  2. Rice CountyBest early July · 11 checklists that week, 572 in all74%
  3. Chase CountyBest mid May · 71 checklists that week, 2,235 in all72%
  4. Anderson CountyBest the second week of June · 17 checklists that week, 701 in all71%
  5. Elk CountyBest late May · 17 checklists that week, 411 in all67%
  6. Stafford CountyBest early June · 124 checklists that week, 6,839 in all64%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Tallgrass Prairie National PreserveChase County, best early June · 24 checklists that week, 644 in all97%
  2. Greater Flint Hills Fee (southeast)Riley County, best late April · 22 checklists that week, 141 in all91%
  3. Cheney State ParkReno County, best early July · 26 checklists that week, 1,708 in all89%
  4. Big Salt MarshStafford County, best mid June · 20 checklists that week, 600 in all85%

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

Best time of day

In Kansas, the Eastern Meadowlark is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (18% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%12 am: too few checklists (150) to judge1 am: too few checklists (119) to judge2 am: too few checklists (97) to judge3 am: too few checklists (94) to judge4 am: too few checklists (124) to judge5 am: too few checklists (1459) to judge6 am: 22% of 12550 checklists7 am: 16% of 34128 checklists8 am: 16% of 45960 checklists9 am: 15% of 37806 checklists10 am: 12% of 32102 checklists11 am: 11% of 25896 checklists12 pm: 8.7% of 24203 checklists1 pm: 9.2% of 20269 checklists2 pm: 8.5% of 20772 checklists3 pm: 8.7% of 20978 checklists4 pm: 9.0% of 22094 checklists5 pm: 10% of 17739 checklists6 pm: 12% of 13963 checklists7 pm: 15% of 10110 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (4188) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (968) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (325) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (171) 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
January3.5%2.9%3.0%3.0%
February4.9%3.2%3.9%6.6%
March8.7%14%16%21%
April20%21%22%20%
May18%18%21%24%
June26%23%22%21%
July21%20%18%15%
August9.8%7.1%5.1%3.4%
September2.2%1.9%3.1%5.5%
October10%11%11%8.4%
November7.6%6.6%4.6%4.6%
December3.1%3.2%3.0%3.0%

Neighboring states

  • Nebraska: arrives early March, 2 weeks earlier than Kansas
  • Oklahoma: arrives mid September, 24 weeks earlier than Kansas
  • Missouri: arrives early March, 2 weeks earlier than Kansas
  • Arkansas: arrives late February, 3 weeks earlier than Kansas

Common questions

When do Eastern Meadowlarks arrive in Kansas?
Eastern Meadowlarks are in Kansas all year, but most are here in spring: numbers build from mid March, peak in early June (25% of checklists), and fall back by late July. In the quietest week (the second week of September) they are still on about 2.4% of checklists.
When do Eastern Meadowlarks leave Kansas?
Eastern Meadowlarks never fully leave Kansas: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by late July, but some are still reported in every week, about 2.4% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Eastern Meadowlark in Kansas?
The Eastern Meadowlark is reported most often in early June, on about 25% of Kansas checklists.
Where in Kansas are Eastern Meadowlarks seen most often?
By county, Greenwood County, Rice County, and Chase County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Eastern Meadowlark (counties with at least 200 checklists).