WhenToBird

Spizella pusilla · Passerellidae

When Do Field Sparrows Arrive in New Jersey?

Adult Field Sparrow
Photo: walkingfern, CC0 1.0 via iNaturalist

Field Sparrows are in New Jersey all year, but most are here in summer: numbers build from late March, peak in late April (16% of checklists), and fall back by the second week of August. In the quietest week (mid February) they are still on about 2.5% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildMar 22-31late March
PeakApr 22-30late April
Fall back byAug 8-14the second week of August
FewestFeb 15-21mid February

Best: late April. Here all year; numbers build from late March and fall back by the second week of August. Peak: on about 16% of New Jersey checklists.

  1. Januncommon
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novcommon
  12. Decuncommon

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

0%5%10%15%20%Jan 1-7: 3.3% of 28167 checklistsJan 8-14: 3.1% of 20583 checklistsJan 15-21: 2.7% of 19739 checklistsJan 22-31: 3.1% of 24586 checklistsFeb 1-7: 3.1% of 17226 checklistsFeb 8-14: 2.7% of 19567 checklistsFeb 15-21: 2.3% of 26553 checklistsFeb 22-28: 2.5% of 19046 checklistsMar 1-7: 3.6% of 17969 checklistsMar 8-14: 5.1% of 18976 checklistsMar 15-21: 7.2% of 18581 checklistsMar 22-31: 9.3% of 27590 checklistsApr 1-7: 12% of 21202 checklistsApr 8-14: 15% of 23609 checklistsApr 15-21: 17% of 25056 checklistsApr 22-30: 16% of 36679 checklistsMay 1-7: 15% of 38378 checklistsMay 8-14: 14% of 44071 checklistsMay 15-21: 15% of 34076 checklistsMay 22-31: 15% of 32558 checklistsJun 1-7: 15% of 18049 checklistsJun 8-14: 15% of 15597 checklistsJun 15-21: 15% of 14894 checklistsJun 22-30: 15% of 17187 checklistsJul 1-7: 14% of 13406 checklistsJul 8-14: 14% of 12550 checklistsJul 15-21: 13% of 12358 checklistsJul 22-31: 13% of 18382 checklistsAug 1-7: 11% of 13689 checklistsAug 8-14: 9.5% of 14006 checklistsAug 15-21: 8.3% of 14483 checklistsAug 22-31: 7.4% of 23182 checklistsSep 1-7: 6.1% of 17984 checklistsSep 8-14: 5.9% of 18320 checklistsSep 15-21: 5.0% of 20491 checklistsSep 22-30: 5.2% of 26176 checklistsOct 1-7: 6.5% of 24112 checklistsOct 8-14: 9.5% of 24603 checklistsOct 15-21: 12% of 24549 checklistsOct 22-31: 12% of 26206 checklistsNov 1-7: 8.3% of 17469 checklistsNov 8-14: 5.8% of 15102 checklistsNov 15-21: 5.8% of 14958 checklistsNov 22-30: 5.2% of 19447 checklistsDec 1-7: 4.5% of 14017 checklistsDec 8-14: 4.5% of 14625 checklistsDec 15-21: 4.7% of 16937 checklistsDec 22-31: 3.8% of 26651 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 Jersey 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 Jersey

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Mercer CountyBest early July · 836 checklists that week, 56,614 in all36%
  2. Somerset CountyBest mid June · 967 checklists that week, 58,057 in all31%
  3. Hunterdon CountyBest late April · 1998 checklists that week, 57,610 in all28%
  4. Warren CountyBest the second week of April · 430 checklists that week, 20,077 in all27%
  5. Burlington CountyBest mid July · 652 checklists that week, 52,358 in all24%
  6. Cape May CountyBest mid April · 3722 checklists that week, 189,832 in all23%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Manasquan River Wildlife Management AreaOcean County, best mid April · 38 checklists that week, 1,093 in all95%
  2. Six Mile Run Reservoir SiteSomerset County, best early June · 26 checklists that week, 195 in all93%
  3. Laurel RunBurlington County, best mid July · 31 checklists that week, 1,053 in all92%
  4. Majors PondMiddlesex County, best late April · 24 checklists that week, 482 in all91%
  5. Rosedale ParkMercer County, best the second week of August · 85 checklists that week, 6,841 in all90%

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

Best time of day

In New Jersey, the Field Sparrow is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (15% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%20%12 am: too few checklists (746) to judge1 am: too few checklists (640) to judge2 am: too few checklists (606) to judge3 am: too few checklists (755) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1681) to judge5 am: too few checklists (11258) to judge6 am: 17% of 50447 checklists7 am: 14% of 118312 checklists8 am: 12% of 123273 checklists9 am: 10% of 107783 checklists10 am: 8.9% of 97537 checklists11 am: 7.2% of 82427 checklists12 pm: 6.2% of 72581 checklists1 pm: 5.9% of 71478 checklists2 pm: 5.7% of 69994 checklists3 pm: 5.4% of 66822 checklists4 pm: 5.5% of 55950 checklists5 pm: 6.0% of 41360 checklists6 pm: 6.6% of 28122 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (14727) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (4257) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1273) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (920) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (693) 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
January3.3%3.1%2.7%3.1%
February3.1%2.7%2.3%2.5%
March3.6%5.1%7.2%9.3%
April12%15%17%16%
May15%14%15%15%
June15%15%15%15%
July14%14%13%13%
August11%9.5%8.3%7.4%
September6.1%5.9%5.0%5.2%
October6.5%9.5%12%12%
November8.3%5.8%5.8%5.2%
December4.5%4.5%4.7%3.8%

Neighboring states

  • Delaware: arrives late March, in the same week than New Jersey
  • Connecticut: arrives the second week of March, 2 weeks earlier than New Jersey
  • Pennsylvania: arrives the second week of March, 2 weeks earlier than New Jersey
  • New York: arrives mid March, 1 week earlier than New Jersey

Common questions

When do Field Sparrows arrive in New Jersey?
Field Sparrows are in New Jersey all year, but most are here in summer: numbers build from late March, peak in late April (16% of checklists), and fall back by the second week of August. In the quietest week (mid February) they are still on about 2.5% of checklists.
When do Field Sparrows leave New Jersey?
Field Sparrows never fully leave New Jersey: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by the second week of August, but some are still reported in every week, about 2.5% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Field Sparrow in New Jersey?
The Field Sparrow is reported most often in late April, on about 16% of New Jersey checklists.
Where in New Jersey are Field Sparrows seen most often?
By county, Mercer County, Somerset County, and Hunterdon County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Field Sparrow (counties with at least 200 checklists).