WhenToBird

Sturnus vulgaris · Sturnidae

When Do European Starlings Arrive in Wisconsin?

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

The European Starling is in Wisconsin all year. It turns up on about 27% of checklists at its peak (late April) and on 14% in its quietest week (late November).

When to look

PresentAll year
Peak weekApr 22-30late April
Quietest weekNov 22-30late November

Best: late April. Here all year. Peak: on about 27% of Wisconsin 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. Novcommon
  12. Deccommon

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

0%10%20%30%Jan 1-7: 14% of 27925 checklistsJan 8-14: 15% of 18337 checklistsJan 15-21: 15% of 17370 checklistsJan 22-31: 16% of 23777 checklistsFeb 1-7: 16% of 16656 checklistsFeb 8-14: 16% of 18286 checklistsFeb 15-21: 17% of 24739 checklistsFeb 22-28: 20% of 20113 checklistsMar 1-7: 24% of 24024 checklistsMar 8-14: 24% of 26722 checklistsMar 15-21: 24% of 27238 checklistsMar 22-31: 25% of 40171 checklistsApr 1-7: 25% of 34961 checklistsApr 8-14: 26% of 39128 checklistsApr 15-21: 27% of 38887 checklistsApr 22-30: 27% of 57231 checklistsMay 1-7: 27% of 55115 checklistsMay 8-14: 27% of 63098 checklistsMay 15-21: 25% of 49821 checklistsMay 22-31: 24% of 56796 checklistsJun 1-7: 25% of 33621 checklistsJun 8-14: 24% of 31282 checklistsJun 15-21: 22% of 30186 checklistsJun 22-30: 20% of 35128 checklistsJul 1-7: 19% of 27088 checklistsJul 8-14: 19% of 23293 checklistsJul 15-21: 18% of 20933 checklistsJul 22-31: 16% of 27595 checklistsAug 1-7: 15% of 19147 checklistsAug 8-14: 15% of 18286 checklistsAug 15-21: 15% of 19195 checklistsAug 22-31: 15% of 28229 checklistsSep 1-7: 15% of 22408 checklistsSep 8-14: 16% of 20857 checklistsSep 15-21: 18% of 20707 checklistsSep 22-30: 18% of 26469 checklistsOct 1-7: 19% of 21069 checklistsOct 8-14: 19% of 21011 checklistsOct 15-21: 18% of 20006 checklistsOct 22-31: 18% of 26362 checklistsNov 1-7: 18% of 18928 checklistsNov 8-14: 16% of 17052 checklistsNov 15-21: 14% of 16291 checklistsNov 22-30: 14% of 20564 checklistsDec 1-7: 14% of 15354 checklistsDec 8-14: 16% of 16294 checklistsDec 15-21: 17% of 21430 checklistsDec 22-31: 15% of 26314 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 Wisconsin 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 Wisconsin

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Langlade CountyBest mid September · 56 checklists that week, 5,023 in all57%
  2. Florence CountyBest late January · 158 checklists that week, 10,179 in all56%
  3. Winnebago CountyBest early May · 938 checklists that week, 26,460 in all50%
  4. La Crosse CountyBest mid July · 237 checklists that week, 15,788 in all50%
  5. Outagamie CountyBest early June · 467 checklists that week, 24,461 in all47%
  6. Clark CountyBest mid March · 13 checklists that week, 2,369 in all44%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Fischer LakeFlorence County, best late January · 85 checklists that week, 2,931 in all91%
  2. Dartford Mill Pond (Green Lake 115)Green Lake County, best the second week of May · 23 checklists that week, 113 in all88%
  3. Lake Wissota 5548Chippewa County, best early May · 29 checklists that week, 334 in all88%
  4. 6183 ReservoirOutagamie County, best late May · 31 checklists that week, 904 in all87%
  5. Lakeside Park WestFond du Lac County, best late May · 23 checklists that week, 1,062 in all86%

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

Best time of day

In Wisconsin, the European Starling is most often listed on checklists started between 5 and 7 am (30% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%40%12 am: too few checklists (993) to judge1 am: too few checklists (844) to judge2 am: too few checklists (839) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1488) to judge4 am: too few checklists (5344) to judge5 am: 27% of 27016 checklists6 am: 31% of 83973 checklists7 am: 29% of 160717 checklists8 am: 26% of 160531 checklists9 am: 21% of 136968 checklists10 am: 17% of 119110 checklists11 am: 15% of 99116 checklists12 pm: 15% of 85078 checklists1 pm: 14% of 80688 checklists2 pm: 15% of 79140 checklists3 pm: 17% of 78599 checklists4 pm: 19% of 69767 checklists5 pm: 22% of 53229 checklists6 pm: 21% of 38769 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (24396) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (10155) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (4990) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (2463) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (1281) 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
January14%15%15%16%
February16%16%17%20%
March24%24%24%25%
April25%26%27%27%
May27%27%25%24%
June25%24%22%20%
July19%19%18%16%
August15%15%15%15%
September15%16%18%18%
October19%19%18%18%
November18%16%14%14%
December14%16%17%15%

Neighboring states

  • Illinois: year-round, peaks the second week of April
  • Iowa: year-round, peaks early May
  • Michigan: year-round, peaks mid April
  • Minnesota: year-round, peaks the second week of June

Common questions

When do European Starlings arrive in Wisconsin?
The European Starling is in Wisconsin all year. It turns up on about 27% of checklists at its peak (late April) and on 14% in its quietest week (late November).
When do European Starlings leave Wisconsin?
The European Starling does not leave Wisconsin: it is reported all year, from 14% of checklists in late November to 27% in late April.
When is the best time to see a European Starling in Wisconsin?
The European Starling is reported most often in late April, on about 27% of Wisconsin checklists.
Where in Wisconsin are European Starlings seen most often?
By county, Langlade County, Florence County, and Winnebago County have the highest peak reporting rates for the European Starling (counties with at least 200 checklists).