WhenToBird

Buteo regalis · Accipitridae

When Do Ferruginous Hawks Arrive in Nevada?

Adult Ferruginous Hawk
Photo: ayden, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Ferruginous Hawks are winter birds in Nevada: they arrive in mid October, peak in early January (1.5% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of March.

When to look

First arrivalsOct 15-21mid October
Common byOct 15-21mid October
PeakJan 1-7early January
Most gone byMar 8-14the second week of March

Best: early January. First arrivals mid October; most are gone by the second week of March. Peak: on about 1.5% of Nevada checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Juluncommon
  8. Augrare
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%0.5%1%1.5%2%Jan 1-7: 1.6% of 5121 checklistsJan 8-14: 1.2% of 3908 checklistsJan 15-21: 1.2% of 4000 checklistsJan 22-31: 1.0% of 4991 checklistsFeb 1-7: 1.2% of 3377 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.9% of 3747 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.8% of 4852 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.8% of 3712 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.9% of 3745 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.8% of 3763 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.5% of 4188 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.2% of 6027 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.2% of 4679 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.3% of 4609 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.1% of 4709 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.2% of 6984 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.1% of 5702 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.2% of 5928 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.2% of 5353 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.3% of 7352 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.3% of 4360 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.3% of 4183 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.4% of 3751 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.4% of 4126 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.2% of 3231 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.2% of 3024 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.3% of 2967 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.4% of 4212 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.1% of 2828 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.1% of 3036 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.1% of 3076 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.1% of 4345 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.1% of 3369 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.2% of 3728 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.2% of 3535 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.4% of 5028 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.4% of 3976 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.6% of 3781 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.4% of 3577 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.9% of 4986 checklistsNov 1-7: 1.0% of 3592 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.9% of 3685 checklistsNov 15-21: 1.1% of 3399 checklistsNov 22-30: 1.2% of 4544 checklistsDec 1-7: 1.5% of 3162 checklistsDec 8-14: 1.3% of 3191 checklistsDec 15-21: 1.1% of 3615 checklistsDec 22-31: 1.7% of 5101 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 Nevada 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 Nevada

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Humboldt CountyBest the second week of March · 48 checklists that week, 2,523 in all11%
  2. Douglas CountyBest the second week of January · 107 checklists that week, 7,476 in all9.8%
  3. Lander CountyBest early March · 15 checklists that week, 1,413 in all9.1%
  4. Pershing CountyBest mid October · 25 checklists that week, 1,407 in all8.7%
  5. Eureka CountyBest late July · 22 checklists that week, 530 in all8.3%
  6. Churchill CountyBest mid June · 58 checklists that week, 3,104 in all7.9%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Spring Mountain Ranch State ParkClark County, best early January · 25 checklists that week, 1,539 in all18%
  2. Tahoe-Carson SpeedwayCarson City, best late October · 21 checklists that week, 285 in all11%
  3. Washoe Lake State Park (South Beach)Washoe County, best late September · 23 checklists that week, 365 in all6.3%
  4. Crystal ReservoirNye County, best mid December · 29 checklists that week, 950 in all5.2%

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

Best time of day

In Nevada, the Ferruginous Hawk is most often listed on checklists started between 9 and 11 am (0.9% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%12 am: too few checklists (114) to judge1 am: too few checklists (99) to judge2 am: too few checklists (71) to judge3 am: too few checklists (108) to judge4 am: too few checklists (459) to judge5 am: 0.3% of 4313 checklists6 am: 0.2% of 17070 checklists7 am: 0.4% of 27389 checklists8 am: 0.6% of 24858 checklists9 am: 0.9% of 22012 checklists10 am: 0.9% of 19284 checklists11 am: 0.9% of 15592 checklists12 pm: 0.6% of 12432 checklists1 pm: 0.6% of 11386 checklists2 pm: 0.6% of 11262 checklists3 pm: 0.5% of 10721 checklists4 pm: 0.5% of 9090 checklists5 pm: 0.4% of 6397 checklists6 pm: 0.1% of 5012 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (3026) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (905) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (271) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (164) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (120) 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
January1.6%1.2%1.2%1.0%
February1.2%0.9%0.8%0.8%
March0.9%0.8%0.5%0.2%
April0.2%0.3%0.1%0.2%
May0.1%0.2%0.2%0.3%
June0.3%0.3%0.4%0.4%
July0.2%0.2%0.3%0.4%
August0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
September0.1%0.2%0.2%0.4%
October0.4%0.6%0.4%0.9%
November1.0%0.9%1.1%1.2%
December1.5%1.3%1.1%1.7%

Neighboring states

  • California: arrives late October, 1 week later than Nevada
  • Utah: arrives early October, 2 weeks earlier than Nevada
  • Arizona: arrives early November, 2 weeks later than Nevada
  • Wyoming: arrives late January, 13 weeks later than Nevada

Common questions

When do Ferruginous Hawks arrive in Nevada?
Ferruginous Hawks are winter birds in Nevada: they arrive in mid October, peak in early January (1.5% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of March.
When do Ferruginous Hawks leave Nevada?
Most Ferruginous Hawks have left Nevada by the second week of March, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Ferruginous Hawk in Nevada?
The Ferruginous Hawk is reported most often in early January, on about 1.5% of Nevada checklists.
Where in Nevada are Ferruginous Hawks seen most often?
By county, Humboldt County, Douglas County, and Lander County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Ferruginous Hawk (counties with at least 200 checklists).