WhenToBird

Leucophaeus pipixcan · Laridae

When Do Franklin's Gulls Arrive in Indiana?

Adult Franklin's Gull
Photo: Dani Alba, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Franklin's Gulls mostly pass through Indiana: they arrive in late September, peak in mid October (1.6% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of November.

When to look

First arrivalsSep 22-30late September
Common bySep 22-30late September
PeakOct 15-21mid October
Most gone byNov 8-14the second week of November

Best: mid October. First arrivals late September; most are gone by the second week of November. Peak: on about 1.6% of Indiana checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marnot usually seen
  4. Aprnot usually seen
  5. Maynot usually seen
  6. Junnot usually seen
  7. Julnot usually seen
  8. Augrare
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novcommon
  12. Decrare

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

0%0.5%1%1.5%2%Jan 1-7: 0% of 18123 checklistsJan 8-14: 0% of 12006 checklistsJan 15-21: 0% of 12403 checklistsJan 22-31: 0% of 16181 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0% of 12546 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0% of 14250 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0% of 18077 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0% of 13590 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.1% of 14545 checklistsMar 8-14: 0% of 14594 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.1% of 13894 checklistsMar 22-31: 0% of 22400 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.1% of 18069 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.1% of 19579 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.1% of 19518 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.1% of 30544 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.1% of 28430 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.1% of 30624 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.1% of 22920 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.1% of 21234 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.1% of 12279 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.1% of 10904 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.1% of 9488 checklistsJun 22-30: 0% of 11362 checklistsJul 1-7: 0% of 9947 checklistsJul 8-14: 0% of 9585 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.1% of 8929 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.1% of 12639 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.1% of 9528 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.1% of 9451 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.1% of 9442 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.1% of 14969 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.3% of 12628 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.2% of 11793 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.1% of 11396 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.5% of 14203 checklistsOct 1-7: 1.3% of 11365 checklistsOct 8-14: 1.2% of 12092 checklistsOct 15-21: 2.0% of 10440 checklistsOct 22-31: 1.8% of 13883 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.9% of 10476 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.5% of 9776 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.3% of 9035 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.1% of 12547 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.2% of 9078 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.2% of 8732 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.1% of 11024 checklistsDec 22-31: 0% of 15432 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 Indiana 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 Indiana

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Union CountyBest mid October · 107 checklists that week, 4,811 in all19%
  2. Gibson CountyBest late October · 189 checklists that week, 10,754 in all10%
  3. Sullivan CountyBest late October · 64 checklists that week, 4,018 in all7.9%
  4. Marion CountyBest mid October · 1299 checklists that week, 76,496 in all7.6%
  5. Clark CountyBest early December · 125 checklists that week, 5,057 in all7.0%
  6. Franklin CountyBest the second week of October · 52 checklists that week, 3,657 in all6.3%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. RiverstageClark County, best the second week of December · 25 checklists that week, 192 in all47%
  2. Eagle Creek Park (Crest Branch)Marion County, best the second week of October · 114 checklists that week, 2,458 in all42%
  3. Brookville Recreation AreaUnion County, best mid October · 59 checklists that week, 1,086 in all35%
  4. Fall Creek Trail at Geist DamMarion County, best early September · 34 checklists that week, 1,733 in all26%

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

Best time of day

In Indiana, the Franklin's Gull is most often listed on checklists started between 8 and 10 am (0.2% of those checklists).

0%0.5%12 am: too few checklists (240) to judge1 am: too few checklists (231) to judge2 am: too few checklists (222) to judge3 am: too few checklists (202) to judge4 am: too few checklists (674) to judge5 am: too few checklists (4329) to judge6 am: 0.2% of 20589 checklists7 am: 0.2% of 58470 checklists8 am: 0.2% of 86931 checklists9 am: 0.2% of 78239 checklists10 am: 0.2% of 66080 checklists11 am: 0.2% of 54904 checklists12 pm: 0.1% of 47610 checklists1 pm: 0.2% of 44814 checklists2 pm: 0.2% of 43790 checklists3 pm: 0.2% of 42983 checklists4 pm: 0.2% of 45349 checklists5 pm: 0.2% of 35993 checklists6 pm: 0.1% of 26447 checklists7 pm: 0.1% of 17740 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (7603) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1721) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (517) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (272) 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
January0%0%0%0%
February0%0%0%0%
March0.1%0%0.1%0%
April0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
May0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
June0.1%0.1%0.1%0%
July0%0%0.1%0.1%
August0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
September0.3%0.2%0.1%0.5%
October1.3%1.2%2.0%1.8%
November0.9%0.5%0.3%0.1%
December0.2%0.2%0.1%0%

Neighboring states

  • Illinois: arrives late September, in the same week than Indiana
  • Missouri: arrives mid September, 1 week earlier than Indiana
  • Iowa: arrives mid July, 9 weeks earlier than Indiana
  • Arkansas: arrives mid October, 3 weeks later than Indiana

Common questions

When do Franklin's Gulls arrive in Indiana?
Franklin's Gulls mostly pass through Indiana: they arrive in late September, peak in mid October (1.6% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of November.
When do Franklin's Gulls leave Indiana?
Most Franklin's Gulls have left Indiana by the second week of November, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Franklin's Gull in Indiana?
The Franklin's Gull is reported most often in mid October, on about 1.6% of Indiana checklists.
Where in Indiana are Franklin's Gulls seen most often?
By county, Union County, Gibson County, and Sullivan County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Franklin's Gull (counties with at least 200 checklists).