WhenToBird

Pipilo erythrophthalmus · Passerellidae

When Do Eastern Towhees Arrive in Ohio?

Adult male Eastern Towhee
Photo: Jonathan Layman, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Eastern Towhees are in Ohio all year, but most are here in summer: numbers build from late March, peak in mid April (26% of checklists), and fall back by early August. In the quietest week (early December) they are still on about 3.3% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildMar 22-31late March
PeakApr 15-21mid April
Fall back byAug 1-7early August
FewestDec 1-7early December

Best: mid April. Here all year; numbers build from late March and fall back by early August. Peak: on about 26% of Ohio checklists.

  1. Januncommon
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novuncommon
  12. Decrare

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

0%10%20%30%Jan 1-7: 3.3% of 46637 checklistsJan 8-14: 4.0% of 31056 checklistsJan 15-21: 4.3% of 30129 checklistsJan 22-31: 3.9% of 38665 checklistsFeb 1-7: 3.7% of 27203 checklistsFeb 8-14: 4.2% of 30626 checklistsFeb 15-21: 4.0% of 40705 checklistsFeb 22-28: 4.7% of 31391 checklistsMar 1-7: 5.6% of 32914 checklistsMar 8-14: 7.7% of 33973 checklistsMar 15-21: 10% of 33678 checklistsMar 22-31: 15% of 49889 checklistsApr 1-7: 19% of 41225 checklistsApr 8-14: 22% of 47174 checklistsApr 15-21: 26% of 47017 checklistsApr 22-30: 29% of 73055 checklistsMay 1-7: 22% of 80637 checklistsMay 8-14: 16% of 102552 checklistsMay 15-21: 17% of 64582 checklistsMay 22-31: 20% of 52766 checklistsJun 1-7: 20% of 29279 checklistsJun 8-14: 20% of 25773 checklistsJun 15-21: 20% of 23163 checklistsJun 22-30: 19% of 27794 checklistsJul 1-7: 18% of 23334 checklistsJul 8-14: 18% of 22147 checklistsJul 15-21: 18% of 20998 checklistsJul 22-31: 17% of 29749 checklistsAug 1-7: 16% of 22899 checklistsAug 8-14: 13% of 21972 checklistsAug 15-21: 11% of 22215 checklistsAug 22-31: 9.7% of 35087 checklistsSep 1-7: 9.6% of 29148 checklistsSep 8-14: 11% of 28042 checklistsSep 15-21: 11% of 26751 checklistsSep 22-30: 11% of 32398 checklistsOct 1-7: 12% of 26209 checklistsOct 8-14: 13% of 26809 checklistsOct 15-21: 11% of 23504 checklistsOct 22-31: 8.6% of 33269 checklistsNov 1-7: 5.8% of 25563 checklistsNov 8-14: 4.3% of 23810 checklistsNov 15-21: 3.6% of 22127 checklistsNov 22-30: 3.3% of 29449 checklistsDec 1-7: 3.2% of 22370 checklistsDec 8-14: 3.4% of 21581 checklistsDec 15-21: 3.8% of 24232 checklistsDec 22-31: 4.0% 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. Gallia CountyBest mid October · 14 checklists that week, 1,061 in all74%
  2. Morgan CountyBest early July · 80 checklists that week, 2,908 in all73%
  3. Athens CountyBest mid April · 1002 checklists that week, 25,255 in all67%
  4. Perry CountyBest early July · 109 checklists that week, 6,489 in all67%
  5. Harrison CountyBest late April · 162 checklists that week, 3,150 in all67%
  6. Hocking CountyBest the second week of April · 305 checklists that week, 9,085 in all66%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. East Fork State Park (north)Clermont County, best mid June · 21 checklists that week, 462 in all100%
  2. Killbuck Marsh Wildlife Area (Big Hollow)Wayne County, best late April · 21 checklists that week, 322 in all98%
  3. Richardson Road ParklandFranklin County, best late April · 43 checklists that week, 1,927 in all97%
  4. Blackhand Gorge Dedicated Nature PreserveLicking County, best late April · 46 checklists that week, 714 in all97%
  5. Wayne National Forest (west)Athens County, best mid April · 29 checklists that week, 191 in all96%

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

Best time of day

In Ohio, the Eastern Towhee is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (22% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%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: 26% of 43093 checklists7 am: 21% of 142017 checklists8 am: 17% of 205296 checklists9 am: 15% of 196322 checklists10 am: 12% of 170882 checklists11 am: 11% of 144567 checklists12 pm: 9.2% of 126551 checklists1 pm: 8.9% of 117855 checklists2 pm: 8.4% of 112869 checklists3 pm: 8.3% of 109786 checklists4 pm: 9.1% of 103116 checklists5 pm: 11% of 78409 checklists6 pm: 13% of 56785 checklists7 pm: 13% 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
January3.3%4.0%4.3%3.9%
February3.7%4.2%4.0%4.7%
March5.6%7.7%10%15%
April19%22%26%29%
May22%16%17%20%
June20%20%20%19%
July18%18%18%17%
August16%13%11%9.7%
September9.6%11%11%11%
October12%13%11%8.6%
November5.8%4.3%3.6%3.3%
December3.2%3.4%3.8%4.0%

Neighboring states

  • West Virginia: arrives late March, in the same week than Ohio
  • Indiana: arrives late March, in the same week than Ohio
  • Michigan: arrives mid March, 1 week earlier than Ohio
  • Kentucky: arrives the second week of March, 2 weeks earlier than Ohio

Common questions

When do Eastern Towhees arrive in Ohio?
Eastern Towhees are in Ohio all year, but most are here in summer: numbers build from late March, peak in mid April (26% of checklists), and fall back by early August. In the quietest week (early December) they are still on about 3.3% of checklists.
When do Eastern Towhees leave Ohio?
Eastern Towhees never fully leave Ohio: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by early August, but some are still reported in every week, about 3.3% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Eastern Towhee in Ohio?
The Eastern Towhee is reported most often in mid April, on about 26% of Ohio checklists.
Where in Ohio are Eastern Towhees seen most often?
By county, Gallia County, Morgan County, and Athens County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Eastern Towhee (counties with at least 200 checklists).