WhenToBird

Mareca penelope · Anatidae

When Do Eurasian Wigeons Arrive in California?

Adult male Eurasian Wigeon
Photo: Marcel_Pepin, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Eurasian Wigeons are winter birds in California: they arrive in late October, peak in mid January (1.1% of checklists), and most are gone by mid March.

When to look

First arrivalsOct 22-31late October
Common byOct 22-31late October
PeakJan 15-21mid January
Most gone byMar 15-21mid March

Best: mid January. First arrivals late October; most are gone by mid March. Peak: on about 1.1% of California checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marcommon
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Maynot usually seen
  6. Junnot usually seen
  7. Julnot usually seen
  8. Augnot usually seen
  9. Seprare
  10. Octuncommon
  11. Novcommon
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%0.5%1%1.5%Jan 1-7: 1.1% of 112336 checklistsJan 8-14: 1.1% of 85518 checklistsJan 15-21: 1.1% of 86488 checklistsJan 22-31: 1.1% of 116174 checklistsFeb 1-7: 1.0% of 75171 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.9% of 84467 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.7% of 105683 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.8% of 83396 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.7% of 77470 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.6% of 75180 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.4% of 80770 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.3% of 114116 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.1% of 84057 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.1% of 83692 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.1% of 89242 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.1% of 114289 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.1% of 85728 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.1% of 91984 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.1% of 75478 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.1% of 106250 checklistsJun 1-7: 0% of 70051 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.1% of 67485 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.1% of 66269 checklistsJun 22-30: 0% of 79172 checklistsJul 1-7: 0% of 62877 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.1% of 60328 checklistsJul 15-21: 0% of 59705 checklistsJul 22-31: 0% of 83796 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.1% of 60215 checklistsAug 8-14: 0% of 60172 checklistsAug 15-21: 0% of 59877 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.1% of 89107 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.1% of 72000 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.1% of 71228 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.1% of 76808 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.1% of 100204 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.2% of 76571 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.3% of 80874 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.4% of 74581 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.4% of 97498 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.4% of 70851 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.5% of 72431 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.5% of 66767 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.7% of 94737 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.8% of 65393 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.9% of 67449 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.7% of 83421 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.7% of 124993 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 California 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 California

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Colusa CountyBest the second week of January · 220 checklists that week, 7,653 in all16%
  2. Modoc CountyBest mid February · 56 checklists that week, 6,138 in all6.2%
  3. Butte CountyBest early December · 609 checklists that week, 33,693 in all4.9%
  4. Humboldt CountyBest late October · 2381 checklists that week, 95,963 in all4.8%
  5. Alpine CountyBest early November · 38 checklists that week, 6,013 in all3.0%
  6. Del Norte CountyBest the second week of January · 263 checklists that week, 16,363 in all3.0%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Pearson ParkOrange County, best the second week of January · 27 checklists that week, 200 in all94%
  2. Miller Knox Regional ShorelineContra Costa County, best the second week of January · 54 checklists that week, 2,001 in all70%
  3. Elkhorn Slough / Elkhorn HighlandsMonterey County, best the second week of January · 23 checklists that week, 368 in all68%
  4. Colusa National Wildlife Refuge (Powell Slough)Colusa County, best the second week of December · 24 checklists that week, 795 in all50%
  5. Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge (northwest 2)Santa Clara County, best the second week of January · 32 checklists that week, 681 in all49%
  6. Centennial Regional ParkOrange County, best the second week of January · 42 checklists that week, 325 in all48%

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

Best time of day

In California, the Eurasian Wigeon is most often listed on checklists started between 1 and 3 pm (0.5% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%12 am: too few checklists (1688) to judge1 am: too few checklists (1451) to judge2 am: too few checklists (1402) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1743) to judge4 am: too few checklists (4647) to judge5 am: too few checklists (32158) to judge6 am: 0.1% of 186053 checklists7 am: 0.3% of 444086 checklists8 am: 0.4% of 535846 checklists9 am: 0.4% of 486061 checklists10 am: 0.4% of 411130 checklists11 am: 0.5% of 325798 checklists12 pm: 0.5% of 269132 checklists1 pm: 0.5% of 244762 checklists2 pm: 0.5% of 235420 checklists3 pm: 0.5% of 232365 checklists4 pm: 0.3% of 208688 checklists5 pm: 0.1% of 146104 checklists6 pm: 0.1% of 96867 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (50942) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (14803) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (5561) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (3546) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (2092) 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
January1.1%1.1%1.1%1.1%
February1.0%0.9%0.7%0.8%
March0.7%0.6%0.4%0.3%
April0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
May0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
June0%0.1%0.1%0%
July0%0.1%0%0%
August0.1%0%0%0.1%
September0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
October0.2%0.3%0.4%0.4%
November0.4%0.5%0.5%0.7%
December0.8%0.9%0.7%0.7%

Neighboring states

  • Oregon: arrives mid October, 1 week earlier than California
  • Washington: arrives mid October, 1 week earlier than California
  • Montana: arrives early March, 17 weeks later than California
  • Alaska: arrives mid September, 5 weeks earlier than California

Common questions

When do Eurasian Wigeons arrive in California?
Eurasian Wigeons are winter birds in California: they arrive in late October, peak in mid January (1.1% of checklists), and most are gone by mid March.
When do Eurasian Wigeons leave California?
Most Eurasian Wigeons have left California by mid March, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Eurasian Wigeon in California?
The Eurasian Wigeon is reported most often in mid January, on about 1.1% of California checklists.
Where in California are Eurasian Wigeons seen most often?
By county, Colusa County, Modoc County, and Butte County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Eurasian Wigeon (counties with at least 200 checklists).