WhenToBird

Sturnus vulgaris · Sturnidae

When Do European Starlings Arrive in South Dakota?

Adult female European Starling
Photo: egorbirder, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

The European Starling is in South Dakota all year. It turns up on about 26% of checklists at its peak (early May) and on 11% in its quietest week (mid July).

When to look

PresentAll year
Peak weekMay 1-7early May
Quietest weekJul 15-21mid July

Best: early May. Here all year. Peak: on about 26% of South Dakota checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%10%20%30%Jan 1-7: 17% of 1699 checklistsJan 8-14: 17% of 967 checklistsJan 15-21: 20% of 893 checklistsJan 22-31: 20% of 1338 checklistsFeb 1-7: 16% of 898 checklistsFeb 8-14: 16% of 1013 checklistsFeb 15-21: 19% of 1650 checklistsFeb 22-28: 23% of 1011 checklistsMar 1-7: 24% of 1304 checklistsMar 8-14: 25% of 1447 checklistsMar 15-21: 26% of 1524 checklistsMar 22-31: 24% of 2850 checklistsApr 1-7: 22% of 2170 checklistsApr 8-14: 25% of 2259 checklistsApr 15-21: 23% of 2578 checklistsApr 22-30: 26% of 3858 checklistsMay 1-7: 26% of 3532 checklistsMay 8-14: 25% of 4498 checklistsMay 15-21: 26% of 4211 checklistsMay 22-31: 23% of 5094 checklistsJun 1-7: 19% of 3279 checklistsJun 8-14: 16% of 3503 checklistsJun 15-21: 16% of 2861 checklistsJun 22-30: 14% of 3893 checklistsJul 1-7: 14% of 2666 checklistsJul 8-14: 12% of 2554 checklistsJul 15-21: 10% of 2412 checklistsJul 22-31: 11% of 2746 checklistsAug 1-7: 13% of 1842 checklistsAug 8-14: 12% of 1899 checklistsAug 15-21: 14% of 1757 checklistsAug 22-31: 16% of 2464 checklistsSep 1-7: 15% of 1894 checklistsSep 8-14: 19% of 1794 checklistsSep 15-21: 16% of 1671 checklistsSep 22-30: 18% of 2085 checklistsOct 1-7: 18% of 1429 checklistsOct 8-14: 18% of 1441 checklistsOct 15-21: 16% of 1330 checklistsOct 22-31: 21% of 1471 checklistsNov 1-7: 21% of 1168 checklistsNov 8-14: 19% of 1068 checklistsNov 15-21: 16% of 985 checklistsNov 22-30: 19% of 1108 checklistsDec 1-7: 20% of 890 checklistsDec 8-14: 20% of 957 checklistsDec 15-21: 21% of 1246 checklistsDec 22-31: 19% of 1514 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 South Dakota 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 South Dakota

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Clay CountyBest the second week of December · 10 checklists that week, 2,633 in all73%
  2. Douglas CountyBest early March · 51 checklists that week, 3,141 in all69%
  3. Oglala Lakota CountyBest late October · 14 checklists that week, 214 in all60%
  4. Butte CountyBest mid January · 14 checklists that week, 987 in all59%
  5. Hughes CountyBest early September · 53 checklists that week, 3,765 in all46%
  6. Codington CountyBest the second week of May · 89 checklists that week, 1,303 in all44%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. ElmwoodMinnehaha County, best early May · 32 checklists that week, 291 in all88%
  2. Bramble ParkCodington County, best late April · 23 checklists that week, 280 in all82%
  3. Farm IslandHughes County, best early April · 20 checklists that week, 825 in all79%
  4. SertomaMinnehaha County, best early May · 52 checklists that week, 764 in all78%
  5. Oaha Recreation AreaStanley County, best early May · 20 checklists that week, 247 in all75%

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

Best time of day

In South Dakota, the European Starling is most often listed on checklists started between 7 and 9 am (28% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%12 am: too few checklists (49) to judge1 am: too few checklists (44) to judge2 am: too few checklists (33) to judge3 am: too few checklists (59) to judge4 am: too few checklists (227) to judge5 am: too few checklists (1080) to judge6 am: 28% of 3387 checklists7 am: 28% of 7718 checklists8 am: 28% of 10342 checklists9 am: 22% of 10758 checklists10 am: 17% of 9123 checklists11 am: 15% of 7814 checklists12 pm: 13% of 6876 checklists1 pm: 12% of 6801 checklists2 pm: 13% of 6673 checklists3 pm: 15% of 6344 checklists4 pm: 21% of 6412 checklists5 pm: 22% of 5570 checklists6 pm: 19% of 4276 checklists7 pm: 17% of 3183 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (1499) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (329) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (82) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (42) 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%20%20%
February16%16%19%23%
March24%25%26%24%
April22%25%23%26%
May26%25%26%23%
June19%16%16%14%
July14%12%10%11%
August13%12%14%16%
September15%19%16%18%
October18%18%16%21%
November21%19%16%19%
December20%20%21%19%

Neighboring states

Common questions

When do European Starlings arrive in South Dakota?
The European Starling is in South Dakota all year. It turns up on about 26% of checklists at its peak (early May) and on 11% in its quietest week (mid July).
When do European Starlings leave South Dakota?
The European Starling does not leave South Dakota: it is reported all year, from 11% of checklists in mid July to 26% in early May.
When is the best time to see a European Starling in South Dakota?
The European Starling is reported most often in early May, on about 26% of South Dakota checklists.
Where in South Dakota are European Starlings seen most often?
By county, Clay County, Douglas County, and Oglala Lakota County have the highest peak reporting rates for the European Starling (counties with at least 200 checklists).