WhenToBird

Hesperiphona vespertina · Fringillidae

When Do Evening Grosbeaks Arrive in New Mexico?

Adult female evening grosbeak
Photo: Some Donkus, CC0 1.0 via iNaturalist

Evening Grosbeaks reach New Mexico in mid July, are common by late July, peak in early May (4.4% of checklists), and most are gone by early June.

When to look

First arrivalsJul 15-21mid July
Common byJul 22-31late July
PeakMay 1-7early May
Most gone byJun 1-7early June

Best: early May. First arrivals mid July; most are gone by early June. Peak: on about 4.4% of New Mexico checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novcommon
  12. Deccommon

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

0%2%4%6%Jan 1-7: 1.7% of 11827 checklistsJan 8-14: 1.8% of 9370 checklistsJan 15-21: 1.8% of 9561 checklistsJan 22-31: 1.6% of 12707 checklistsFeb 1-7: 1.6% of 9365 checklistsFeb 8-14: 1.8% of 10141 checklistsFeb 15-21: 2.0% of 12431 checklistsFeb 22-28: 1.5% of 9159 checklistsMar 1-7: 1.7% of 9348 checklistsMar 8-14: 2.1% of 9704 checklistsMar 15-21: 1.9% of 9896 checklistsMar 22-31: 2.2% of 14679 checklistsApr 1-7: 2.5% of 11145 checklistsApr 8-14: 3.2% of 11939 checklistsApr 15-21: 3.3% of 12885 checklistsApr 22-30: 4.5% of 17935 checklistsMay 1-7: 4.4% of 15202 checklistsMay 8-14: 4.3% of 16604 checklistsMay 15-21: 3.7% of 12720 checklistsMay 22-31: 2.8% of 16699 checklistsJun 1-7: 2.0% of 9889 checklistsJun 8-14: 1.4% of 9322 checklistsJun 15-21: 1.5% of 8341 checklistsJun 22-30: 1.5% of 10562 checklistsJul 1-7: 1.4% of 9036 checklistsJul 8-14: 1.3% of 8461 checklistsJul 15-21: 1.5% of 8585 checklistsJul 22-31: 1.8% of 11800 checklistsAug 1-7: 2.4% of 8289 checklistsAug 8-14: 3.2% of 8882 checklistsAug 15-21: 2.7% of 9136 checklistsAug 22-31: 2.7% of 12662 checklistsSep 1-7: 2.4% of 9936 checklistsSep 8-14: 2.3% of 9581 checklistsSep 15-21: 2.1% of 9355 checklistsSep 22-30: 2.6% of 12402 checklistsOct 1-7: 3.2% of 9467 checklistsOct 8-14: 3.2% of 10279 checklistsOct 15-21: 3.7% of 8990 checklistsOct 22-31: 3.4% of 11986 checklistsNov 1-7: 3.1% of 8461 checklistsNov 8-14: 3.2% of 8801 checklistsNov 15-21: 3.2% of 8616 checklistsNov 22-30: 3.0% of 11088 checklistsDec 1-7: 1.8% of 8444 checklistsDec 8-14: 1.8% of 8575 checklistsDec 15-21: 2.1% of 10958 checklistsDec 22-31: 2.1% of 14523 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 New Mexico 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 New Mexico

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Colfax CountyBest the second week of February · 58 checklists that week, 8,053 in all34%
  2. Taos CountyBest the second week of May · 665 checklists that week, 19,175 in all24%
  3. McKinley CountyBest early May · 104 checklists that week, 2,545 in all18%
  4. Los Alamos CountyBest early May · 1751 checklists that week, 50,554 in all13%
  5. San Miguel CountyBest the second week of April · 158 checklists that week, 8,857 in all11%
  6. Rio Arriba CountyBest early August · 156 checklists that week, 8,526 in all11%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Fred Baca ParkTaos County, best late August · 68 checklists that week, 1,867 in all71%
  2. Carson National ForestRio Arriba County, best the second week of July · 26 checklists that week, 132 in all49%
  3. Ranch School TrailLos Alamos County, best the second week of November · 24 checklists that week, 1,691 in all46%
  4. Randall Davey Audubon PreserveSanta Fe County, best mid August · 104 checklists that week, 4,827 in all42%
  5. Talpa ReservoirTaos County, best early September · 21 checklists that week, 548 in all34%
  6. Gonzales RoadLos Alamos County, best late April · 23 checklists that week, 341 in all33%

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

Best time of day

In New Mexico, the Evening Grosbeak is most often listed on checklists started between 7 and 9 am (3.8% of those checklists).

0%1%2%3%4%12 am: too few checklists (186) to judge1 am: too few checklists (180) to judge2 am: too few checklists (172) to judge3 am: too few checklists (183) to judge4 am: too few checklists (527) to judge5 am: too few checklists (4013) to judge6 am: 3.0% of 29677 checklists7 am: 3.9% of 71785 checklists8 am: 3.6% of 79208 checklists9 am: 3.1% of 61605 checklists10 am: 2.4% of 49588 checklists11 am: 1.9% of 38079 checklists12 pm: 1.8% of 31089 checklists1 pm: 1.8% of 27524 checklists2 pm: 1.6% of 26644 checklists3 pm: 1.4% of 26849 checklists4 pm: 1.4% of 25156 checklists5 pm: 1.4% of 19061 checklists6 pm: 1.1% of 15112 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (9040) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (2738) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (736) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (384) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (208) 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
January1.7%1.8%1.8%1.6%
February1.6%1.8%2.0%1.5%
March1.7%2.1%1.9%2.2%
April2.5%3.2%3.3%4.5%
May4.4%4.3%3.7%2.8%
June2.0%1.4%1.5%1.5%
July1.4%1.3%1.5%1.8%
August2.4%3.2%2.7%2.7%
September2.4%2.3%2.1%2.6%
October3.2%3.2%3.7%3.4%
November3.1%3.2%3.2%3.0%
December1.8%1.8%2.1%2.1%

Neighboring states

  • Colorado: arrives early July, 2 weeks earlier than New Mexico
  • Utah: arrives early October, 10 weeks later than New Mexico
  • Wyoming: arrives early October, 10 weeks later than New Mexico
  • Nevada: arrives late January, 23 weeks earlier than New Mexico

Common questions

When do Evening Grosbeaks arrive in New Mexico?
Evening Grosbeaks reach New Mexico in mid July, are common by late July, peak in early May (4.4% of checklists), and most are gone by early June.
When do Evening Grosbeaks leave New Mexico?
Most Evening Grosbeaks have left New Mexico by early June, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until the second week of June.
When is the best time to see a Evening Grosbeak in New Mexico?
The Evening Grosbeak is reported most often in early May, on about 4.4% of New Mexico checklists.
Where in New Mexico are Evening Grosbeaks seen most often?
By county, Colfax County, Taos County, and McKinley County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Evening Grosbeak (counties with at least 200 checklists).