WhenToBird

Sturnella magna · Icteridae

When Do Eastern Meadowlarks Arrive in Ohio?

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

Eastern Meadowlarks reach Ohio in mid February, are common by early March, peak in the second week of June (9.2% 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 9.2% of Ohio checklists.

  1. Janrare
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julcommon
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octuncommon
  11. Novuncommon
  12. Decrare

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

0%5%10%15%Jan 1-7: 0.5% of 46637 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.5% of 31056 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.6% of 30129 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.6% of 38665 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.9% of 27203 checklistsFeb 8-14: 1.0% of 30626 checklistsFeb 15-21: 1.0% of 40705 checklistsFeb 22-28: 2.5% of 31391 checklistsMar 1-7: 4.0% of 32914 checklistsMar 8-14: 5.3% of 33973 checklistsMar 15-21: 5.4% of 33678 checklistsMar 22-31: 7.1% of 49889 checklistsApr 1-7: 8.0% of 41225 checklistsApr 8-14: 7.7% of 47174 checklistsApr 15-21: 7.1% of 47017 checklistsApr 22-30: 6.3% of 73055 checklistsMay 1-7: 5.0% of 80637 checklistsMay 8-14: 4.3% of 102552 checklistsMay 15-21: 5.4% of 64582 checklistsMay 22-31: 8.0% of 52766 checklistsJun 1-7: 10% of 29279 checklistsJun 8-14: 8.7% of 25773 checklistsJun 15-21: 8.5% of 23163 checklistsJun 22-30: 7.7% of 27794 checklistsJul 1-7: 6.8% of 23334 checklistsJul 8-14: 5.5% of 22147 checklistsJul 15-21: 4.7% of 20998 checklistsJul 22-31: 3.6% of 29749 checklistsAug 1-7: 2.6% of 22899 checklistsAug 8-14: 1.9% of 21972 checklistsAug 15-21: 1.5% of 22215 checklistsAug 22-31: 1.0% of 35087 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.8% of 29148 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.8% of 28042 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.2% of 26751 checklistsSep 22-30: 2.0% of 32398 checklistsOct 1-7: 3.1% of 26209 checklistsOct 8-14: 3.2% of 26809 checklistsOct 15-21: 2.4% of 23504 checklistsOct 22-31: 1.9% of 33269 checklistsNov 1-7: 1.3% of 25563 checklistsNov 8-14: 1.0% of 23810 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.7% of 22127 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.8% of 29449 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.6% of 22370 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.5% of 21581 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.5% of 24232 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.7% of 36084 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 Ohio 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 Ohio

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Harrison CountyBest the second week of June · 146 checklists that week, 3,150 in all56%
  2. Hardin CountyBest late May · 170 checklists that week, 4,583 in all51%
  3. Union CountyBest early June · 302 checklists that week, 12,023 in all51%
  4. Williams CountyBest early June · 57 checklists that week, 2,778 in all35%
  5. Noble CountyBest mid June · 29 checklists that week, 1,516 in all34%
  6. Carroll CountyBest late April · 114 checklists that week, 2,027 in all33%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Fry PondStark County, best early May · 38 checklists that week, 421 in all93%
  2. Consolidation Coal Company Pond 0110-Harrison County, best late May · 21 checklists that week, 274 in all93%

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

Best time of day

In Ohio, the Eastern Meadowlark is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (6.1% of those checklists).

0%2%4%6%8%12 am: too few checklists (574) to judge1 am: too few checklists (609) to judge2 am: too few checklists (466) to judge3 am: too few checklists (478) to judge4 am: too few checklists (662) to judge5 am: too few checklists (4366) to judge6 am: 7.4% of 43093 checklists7 am: 5.6% of 142017 checklists8 am: 4.4% of 205296 checklists9 am: 4.0% of 196322 checklists10 am: 3.4% of 170882 checklists11 am: 3.1% of 144567 checklists12 pm: 2.8% of 126551 checklists1 pm: 2.9% of 117855 checklists2 pm: 2.7% of 112869 checklists3 pm: 2.8% of 109786 checklists4 pm: 3.1% of 103116 checklists5 pm: 4.1% of 78409 checklists6 pm: 4.9% of 56785 checklists7 pm: 5.4% of 37923 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (14954) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2710) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (854) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (486) 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%0.6%0.6%
February0.9%1.0%1.0%2.5%
March4.0%5.3%5.4%7.1%
April8.0%7.7%7.1%6.3%
May5.0%4.3%5.4%8.0%
June10%8.7%8.5%7.7%
July6.8%5.5%4.7%3.6%
August2.6%1.9%1.5%1.0%
September0.8%0.8%1.2%2.0%
October3.1%3.2%2.4%1.9%
November1.3%1.0%0.7%0.8%
December0.6%0.5%0.5%0.7%

Neighboring states

  • West Virginia: arrives late January, 3 weeks earlier than Ohio
  • Indiana: arrives the second week of December, 9 weeks earlier than Ohio
  • Michigan: arrives early March, 2 weeks later than Ohio
  • Kentucky: arrives late February, 1 week later than Ohio

Common questions

When do Eastern Meadowlarks arrive in Ohio?
Eastern Meadowlarks reach Ohio in mid February, are common by early March, peak in the second week of June (9.2% of checklists), and most are gone by early August.
When do Eastern Meadowlarks leave Ohio?
Most Eastern Meadowlarks have left Ohio by early August, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until late August.
When is the best time to see a Eastern Meadowlark in Ohio?
The Eastern Meadowlark is reported most often in the second week of June, on about 9.2% of Ohio checklists.
Where in Ohio are Eastern Meadowlarks seen most often?
By county, Harrison County, Hardin County, and Union County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Eastern Meadowlark (counties with at least 200 checklists).