WhenToBird

Spizella pusilla · Passerellidae

When Do Field Sparrows Arrive in Tennessee?

Adult Field Sparrow
Photo: walkingfern, CC0 1.0 via iNaturalist

Field Sparrows are in Tennessee all year, but most are here in spring: numbers build from early March, peak in early April (21% of checklists), and fall back by the second week of August. In the quietest week (mid September) they are still on about 6.8% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildMar 1-7early March
PeakApr 1-7early April
Fall back byAug 8-14the second week of August
FewestSep 15-21mid September

Best: early April. Here all year; numbers build from early March and fall back by the second week of August. Peak: on about 21% of Tennessee checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novcommon
  12. Deccommon

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

0%10%20%30%Jan 1-7: 8.5% of 16696 checklistsJan 8-14: 8.2% of 13056 checklistsJan 15-21: 8.3% of 13646 checklistsJan 22-31: 8.3% of 18071 checklistsFeb 1-7: 8.0% of 13342 checklistsFeb 8-14: 8.1% of 14316 checklistsFeb 15-21: 8.0% of 20395 checklistsFeb 22-28: 12% of 13129 checklistsMar 1-7: 15% of 12701 checklistsMar 8-14: 18% of 12789 checklistsMar 15-21: 19% of 13599 checklistsMar 22-31: 22% of 20293 checklistsApr 1-7: 21% of 15779 checklistsApr 8-14: 21% of 16646 checklistsApr 15-21: 20% of 18625 checklistsApr 22-30: 19% of 26689 checklistsMay 1-7: 20% of 21054 checklistsMay 8-14: 19% of 19954 checklistsMay 15-21: 20% of 14494 checklistsMay 22-31: 20% of 17790 checklistsJun 1-7: 19% of 11344 checklistsJun 8-14: 19% of 11049 checklistsJun 15-21: 20% of 9625 checklistsJun 22-30: 20% of 11522 checklistsJul 1-7: 20% of 9208 checklistsJul 8-14: 20% of 8814 checklistsJul 15-21: 19% of 8887 checklistsJul 22-31: 20% of 12739 checklistsAug 1-7: 19% of 9632 checklistsAug 8-14: 18% of 9514 checklistsAug 15-21: 14% of 9619 checklistsAug 22-31: 11% of 14227 checklistsSep 1-7: 7.7% of 11988 checklistsSep 8-14: 7.1% of 11660 checklistsSep 15-21: 6.6% of 11774 checklistsSep 22-30: 6.7% of 15658 checklistsOct 1-7: 7.9% of 12641 checklistsOct 8-14: 8.8% of 12389 checklistsOct 15-21: 10% of 10249 checklistsOct 22-31: 13% of 14085 checklistsNov 1-7: 13% of 10700 checklistsNov 8-14: 12% of 10709 checklistsNov 15-21: 10% of 9955 checklistsNov 22-30: 9.3% of 13423 checklistsDec 1-7: 8.9% of 10106 checklistsDec 8-14: 10% of 10478 checklistsDec 15-21: 11% of 12177 checklistsDec 22-31: 9.5% of 17397 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 Tennessee 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 Tennessee

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Lincoln CountyBest early June · 63 checklists that week, 4,596 in all80%
  2. Grainger CountyBest mid October · 44 checklists that week, 3,030 in all63%
  3. Giles CountyBest the second week of May · 36 checklists that week, 803 in all58%
  4. Perry CountyBest mid March · 73 checklists that week, 3,047 in all56%
  5. Hawkins CountyBest early July · 226 checklists that week, 11,261 in all55%
  6. Macon CountyBest early July · 12 checklists that week, 221 in all50%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Marcella Vivrette Smith ParkWilliamson County, best late May · 25 checklists that week, 998 in all97%
  2. Seven IslandsKnox County, best mid July · 54 checklists that week, 4,164 in all92%
  3. Kyker Bottoms Wildlife Management AreaBlount County, best early July · 27 checklists that week, 1,772 in all92%

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

Best time of day

In Tennessee, the Field Sparrow is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (20% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%12 am: too few checklists (224) to judge1 am: too few checklists (253) to judge2 am: too few checklists (245) to judge3 am: too few checklists (267) to judge4 am: too few checklists (582) to judge5 am: too few checklists (5688) to judge6 am: 22% of 36828 checklists7 am: 20% of 72816 checklists8 am: 18% of 76910 checklists9 am: 16% of 69071 checklists10 am: 15% of 60943 checklists11 am: 13% of 52311 checklists12 pm: 11% of 46524 checklists1 pm: 11% of 41133 checklists2 pm: 10% of 40305 checklists3 pm: 9.9% of 41013 checklists4 pm: 10% of 40029 checklists5 pm: 11% of 29775 checklists6 pm: 11% of 20977 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (12529) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (4456) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1056) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (445) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (252) 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
January8.5%8.2%8.3%8.3%
February8.0%8.1%8.0%12%
March15%18%19%22%
April21%21%20%19%
May20%19%20%20%
June19%19%20%20%
July20%20%19%20%
August19%18%14%11%
September7.7%7.1%6.6%6.7%
October7.9%8.8%10%13%
November13%12%10%9.3%
December8.9%10%11%9.5%

Neighboring states

  • Kentucky: arrives mid March, 2 weeks later than Tennessee
  • Georgia: arrives mid October, 18 weeks earlier than Tennessee
  • Alabama: arrives the second week of October, 19 weeks earlier than Tennessee
  • Indiana: arrives late February, 1 week earlier than Tennessee

Common questions

When do Field Sparrows arrive in Tennessee?
Field Sparrows are in Tennessee all year, but most are here in spring: numbers build from early March, peak in early April (21% of checklists), and fall back by the second week of August. In the quietest week (mid September) they are still on about 6.8% of checklists.
When do Field Sparrows leave Tennessee?
Field Sparrows never fully leave Tennessee: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by the second week of August, but some are still reported in every week, about 6.8% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Field Sparrow in Tennessee?
The Field Sparrow is reported most often in early April, on about 21% of Tennessee checklists.
Where in Tennessee are Field Sparrows seen most often?
By county, Lincoln County, Grainger County, and Giles County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Field Sparrow (counties with at least 200 checklists).