WhenToBird

Sturnella magna · Icteridae

When Do Eastern Meadowlarks Arrive in Kentucky?

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

Eastern Meadowlarks are in Kentucky all year, but most are here in spring: numbers build from late February, peak in early April (15% of checklists), and fall back by the second week of July. In the quietest week (early September) they are still on about 2.1% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildFeb 22-28late February
PeakApr 1-7early April
Fall back byJul 8-14the second week of July
FewestSep 1-7early September

Best: early April. Here all year; numbers build from late February and fall back by the second week of July. Peak: on about 15% of Kentucky checklists.

  1. Januncommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julcommon
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octuncommon
  11. Novuncommon
  12. Decuncommon

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

0%5%10%15%20%Jan 1-7: 5.3% of 6923 checklistsJan 8-14: 4.8% of 4900 checklistsJan 15-21: 4.7% of 5016 checklistsJan 22-31: 5.2% of 6611 checklistsFeb 1-7: 7.0% of 4986 checklistsFeb 8-14: 7.1% of 5677 checklistsFeb 15-21: 6.3% of 8880 checklistsFeb 22-28: 11% of 5567 checklistsMar 1-7: 12% of 5397 checklistsMar 8-14: 13% of 5462 checklistsMar 15-21: 14% of 5733 checklistsMar 22-31: 16% of 9043 checklistsApr 1-7: 15% of 6763 checklistsApr 8-14: 15% of 7498 checklistsApr 15-21: 13% of 8486 checklistsApr 22-30: 12% of 13396 checklistsMay 1-7: 12% of 10825 checklistsMay 8-14: 13% of 11495 checklistsMay 15-21: 14% of 7363 checklistsMay 22-31: 14% of 8800 checklistsJun 1-7: 14% of 5381 checklistsJun 8-14: 12% of 5244 checklistsJun 15-21: 11% of 4730 checklistsJun 22-30: 11% of 5470 checklistsJul 1-7: 10% of 4567 checklistsJul 8-14: 11% of 4287 checklistsJul 15-21: 8.3% of 4097 checklistsJul 22-31: 6.4% of 6044 checklistsAug 1-7: 4.9% of 4647 checklistsAug 8-14: 4.3% of 4256 checklistsAug 15-21: 3.6% of 4484 checklistsAug 22-31: 2.2% of 6434 checklistsSep 1-7: 1.8% of 5450 checklistsSep 8-14: 2.3% of 5157 checklistsSep 15-21: 2.4% of 5530 checklistsSep 22-30: 3.5% of 6710 checklistsOct 1-7: 5.2% of 5403 checklistsOct 8-14: 6.3% of 5943 checklistsOct 15-21: 5.9% of 4873 checklistsOct 22-31: 5.8% of 6584 checklistsNov 1-7: 5.3% of 5008 checklistsNov 8-14: 4.5% of 4677 checklistsNov 15-21: 5.0% of 4419 checklistsNov 22-30: 4.9% of 5933 checklistsDec 1-7: 4.2% of 4479 checklistsDec 8-14: 4.1% of 4687 checklistsDec 15-21: 5.7% of 6239 checklistsDec 22-31: 6.0% of 7976 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 Kentucky 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 Kentucky

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Mercer CountyBest the second week of March · 41 checklists that week, 1,919 in all71%
  2. Wayne CountyBest mid March · 19 checklists that week, 942 in all68%
  3. Jessamine CountyBest late May · 128 checklists that week, 4,165 in all60%
  4. Garrard CountyBest late March · 36 checklists that week, 1,578 in all57%
  5. Greenup CountyBest the second week of May · 27 checklists that week, 325 in all57%
  6. Logan CountyBest the second week of June · 45 checklists that week, 1,991 in all57%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Camp Nelson Civil War Heritage ParkJessamine County, best early June · 30 checklists that week, 332 in all98%

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

Best time of day

In Kentucky, the Eastern Meadowlark is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (12% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%20%12 am: too few checklists (140) to judge1 am: too few checklists (120) to judge2 am: too few checklists (88) to judge3 am: too few checklists (95) to judge4 am: too few checklists (151) to judge5 am: too few checklists (1289) to judge6 am: 16% of 8227 checklists7 am: 11% of 24608 checklists8 am: 8.7% of 36577 checklists9 am: 8.9% of 34626 checklists10 am: 9.0% of 28796 checklists11 am: 7.4% of 22781 checklists12 pm: 7.2% of 19848 checklists1 pm: 7.2% of 19369 checklists2 pm: 7.5% of 19367 checklists3 pm: 7.2% of 19618 checklists4 pm: 7.9% of 19464 checklists5 pm: 8.8% of 16639 checklists6 pm: 9.2% of 12714 checklists7 pm: 8.5% of 8457 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (3447) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (684) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (267) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (158) 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
January5.3%4.8%4.7%5.2%
February7.0%7.1%6.3%11%
March12%13%14%16%
April15%15%13%12%
May12%13%14%14%
June14%12%11%11%
July10%11%8.3%6.4%
August4.9%4.3%3.6%2.2%
September1.8%2.3%2.4%3.5%
October5.2%6.3%5.9%5.8%
November5.3%4.5%5.0%4.9%
December4.2%4.1%5.7%6.0%

Neighboring states

  • Tennessee: arrives mid February, 1 week earlier than Kentucky
  • Indiana: arrives the second week of December, 10 weeks earlier than Kentucky
  • Ohio: arrives mid February, 1 week earlier than Kentucky
  • Illinois: arrives mid February, 1 week earlier than Kentucky

Common questions

When do Eastern Meadowlarks arrive in Kentucky?
Eastern Meadowlarks are in Kentucky all year, but most are here in spring: numbers build from late February, peak in early April (15% of checklists), and fall back by the second week of July. In the quietest week (early September) they are still on about 2.1% of checklists.
When do Eastern Meadowlarks leave Kentucky?
Eastern Meadowlarks never fully leave Kentucky: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by the second week of July, but some are still reported in every week, about 2.1% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Eastern Meadowlark in Kentucky?
The Eastern Meadowlark is reported most often in early April, on about 15% of Kentucky checklists.
Where in Kentucky are Eastern Meadowlarks seen most often?
By county, Mercer County, Wayne County, and Jessamine County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Eastern Meadowlark (counties with at least 200 checklists).