WhenToBird

Sayornis phoebe · Tyrannidae

When Do Eastern Phoebes Arrive in North Carolina?

Adult Eastern Phoebe
Photo: Thomas Koffel, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Eastern Phoebes are in North Carolina all year, but most are here in fall: numbers build from mid September, peak in the second week of October (37% of checklists), and fall back by late November. In the quietest week (early August) they are still on about 11% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildSep 15-21mid September
PeakOct 8-14the second week of October
Fall back byNov 22-30late November
FewestAug 1-7early August

Best: the second week of October. Here all year; numbers build from mid September and fall back by late November. Peak: on about 37% of North Carolina checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maycommon
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Deccommon

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

0%10%20%30%40%Jan 1-7: 17% of 30085 checklistsJan 8-14: 17% of 22728 checklistsJan 15-21: 16% of 24292 checklistsJan 22-31: 15% of 34122 checklistsFeb 1-7: 14% of 26352 checklistsFeb 8-14: 13% of 29663 checklistsFeb 15-21: 12% of 41515 checklistsFeb 22-28: 20% of 24318 checklistsMar 1-7: 25% of 23408 checklistsMar 8-14: 27% of 22658 checklistsMar 15-21: 28% of 22784 checklistsMar 22-31: 28% of 36034 checklistsApr 1-7: 24% of 28131 checklistsApr 8-14: 23% of 29190 checklistsApr 15-21: 23% of 32847 checklistsApr 22-30: 24% of 47966 checklistsMay 1-7: 23% of 37076 checklistsMay 8-14: 22% of 36228 checklistsMay 15-21: 20% of 30378 checklistsMay 22-31: 18% of 40237 checklistsJun 1-7: 19% of 27551 checklistsJun 8-14: 18% of 26473 checklistsJun 15-21: 18% of 22789 checklistsJun 22-30: 16% of 27615 checklistsJul 1-7: 15% of 20022 checklistsJul 8-14: 13% of 19315 checklistsJul 15-21: 12% of 18934 checklistsJul 22-31: 11% of 25600 checklistsAug 1-7: 11% of 17987 checklistsAug 8-14: 11% of 17307 checklistsAug 15-21: 12% of 17080 checklistsAug 22-31: 14% of 25844 checklistsSep 1-7: 17% of 20818 checklistsSep 8-14: 21% of 20070 checklistsSep 15-21: 25% of 21984 checklistsSep 22-30: 30% of 26979 checklistsOct 1-7: 37% of 22605 checklistsOct 8-14: 39% of 22677 checklistsOct 15-21: 36% of 21407 checklistsOct 22-31: 34% of 25927 checklistsNov 1-7: 31% of 18830 checklistsNov 8-14: 27% of 18418 checklistsNov 15-21: 27% of 19101 checklistsNov 22-30: 24% of 25709 checklistsDec 1-7: 22% of 18856 checklistsDec 8-14: 21% of 18745 checklistsDec 15-21: 22% of 22478 checklistsDec 22-31: 20% of 34796 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 North Carolina 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 North Carolina

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Anson CountyBest early December · 11 checklists that week, 2,224 in all77%
  2. Bladen CountyBest early December · 51 checklists that week, 3,758 in all70%
  3. Lenoir CountyBest the second week of November · 22 checklists that week, 2,189 in all65%
  4. Cleveland CountyBest the second week of October · 137 checklists that week, 6,121 in all65%
  5. Madison CountyBest early October · 54 checklists that week, 6,254 in all63%
  6. Duplin CountyBest early November · 64 checklists that week, 2,097 in all63%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Mecklenburg County Open Space - Chantilly ParkMecklenburg County, best early March · 25 checklists that week, 1,639 in all93%
  2. Mecklenburg County Open Space - Clark's Creek Nature PreserveMecklenburg County, best the second week of October · 98 checklists that week, 1,456 in all92%
  3. City of Raleigh Greenway - Middle Crabtree Creek TrailWake County, best early May · 165 checklists that week, 2,060 in all92%
  4. LeRoy LakeBuncombe County, best the second week of October · 34 checklists that week, 703 in all91%

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

Best time of day

In North Carolina, the Eastern Phoebe is most often listed on checklists started between 7 and 9 am (27% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%12 am: too few checklists (520) to judge1 am: too few checklists (489) to judge2 am: too few checklists (442) to judge3 am: too few checklists (544) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1621) to judge5 am: too few checklists (9671) to judge6 am: 24% of 50335 checklists7 am: 27% of 150152 checklists8 am: 27% of 182902 checklists9 am: 25% of 158933 checklists10 am: 22% of 128398 checklists11 am: 19% of 98671 checklists12 pm: 17% of 78640 checklists1 pm: 17% of 72510 checklists2 pm: 17% of 69179 checklists3 pm: 16% of 67669 checklists4 pm: 15% of 63964 checklists5 pm: 15% of 48520 checklists6 pm: 13% of 33196 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (19700) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (6160) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1943) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1119) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (651) 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
January17%17%16%15%
February14%13%12%20%
March25%27%28%28%
April24%23%23%24%
May23%22%20%18%
June19%18%18%16%
July15%13%12%11%
August11%11%12%14%
September17%21%25%30%
October37%39%36%34%
November31%27%27%24%
December22%21%22%20%

Neighboring states

  • South Carolina: arrives early October, 2 weeks later than North Carolina
  • Virginia: arrives mid September, in the same week than North Carolina
  • West Virginia: arrives late February, 21 weeks later than North Carolina
  • District of Columbia: arrives late February, 21 weeks later than North Carolina

Common questions

When do Eastern Phoebes arrive in North Carolina?
Eastern Phoebes are in North Carolina all year, but most are here in fall: numbers build from mid September, peak in the second week of October (37% of checklists), and fall back by late November. In the quietest week (early August) they are still on about 11% of checklists.
When do Eastern Phoebes leave North Carolina?
Eastern Phoebes never fully leave North Carolina: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by late November, but some are still reported in every week, about 11% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Eastern Phoebe in North Carolina?
The Eastern Phoebe is reported most often in the second week of October, on about 37% of North Carolina checklists.
Where in North Carolina are Eastern Phoebes seen most often?
By county, Anson County, Bladen County, and Lenoir County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Eastern Phoebe (counties with at least 200 checklists).