WhenToBird

Leucophaeus pipixcan · Laridae

When Do Franklin's Gulls Arrive in Nebraska?

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

Franklin's Gulls are winter birds in Nebraska: the first arrive in mid July, they are common by early August, peak in early October (14% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of November.

When to look

First arrivalsJul 15-21mid July
Common byAug 1-7early August
PeakOct 1-7early October
Most gone byNov 8-14the second week of November

Best: early October. First arrivals mid July; most are gone by the second week of November. Peak: on about 14% of Nebraska checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marrare
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maycommon
  6. Junrare
  7. Julrare
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novcommon
  12. Decnot usually seen

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

0%5%10%15%20%Jan 1-7: 0.1% of 4210 checklistsJan 8-14: 0% of 2891 checklistsJan 15-21: 0% of 2685 checklistsJan 22-31: 0% of 3834 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.1% of 2803 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0% of 3134 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.1% of 4508 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.2% of 3238 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.6% of 3862 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.6% of 4894 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.6% of 5862 checklistsMar 22-31: 1.3% of 8598 checklistsApr 1-7: 3.1% of 5530 checklistsApr 8-14: 5.7% of 5528 checklistsApr 15-21: 11% of 6091 checklistsApr 22-30: 11% of 8661 checklistsMay 1-7: 7.7% of 9842 checklistsMay 8-14: 4.0% of 10044 checklistsMay 15-21: 2.8% of 8863 checklistsMay 22-31: 2.2% of 10207 checklistsJun 1-7: 1.3% of 4922 checklistsJun 8-14: 1.2% of 4054 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.6% of 3680 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.7% of 4349 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.6% of 3277 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.9% of 2803 checklistsJul 15-21: 1.2% of 2842 checklistsJul 22-31: 1.8% of 3920 checklistsAug 1-7: 2.1% of 2981 checklistsAug 8-14: 2.9% of 2819 checklistsAug 15-21: 2.9% of 3179 checklistsAug 22-31: 3.3% of 4599 checklistsSep 1-7: 4.3% of 3958 checklistsSep 8-14: 5.1% of 3460 checklistsSep 15-21: 8.9% of 3435 checklistsSep 22-30: 14% of 4975 checklistsOct 1-7: 13% of 3611 checklistsOct 8-14: 16% of 3605 checklistsOct 15-21: 11% of 3474 checklistsOct 22-31: 8.7% of 4352 checklistsNov 1-7: 5.7% of 3119 checklistsNov 8-14: 4.0% of 2887 checklistsNov 15-21: 1.1% of 2568 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.4% of 3506 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.1% of 2453 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.1% of 2756 checklistsDec 15-21: 0% of 3760 checklistsDec 22-31: 0% of 3746 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 Nebraska 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 Nebraska

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Harlan CountyBest early October · 17 checklists that week, 1,276 in all69%
  2. Keith CountyBest the second week of September · 68 checklists that week, 3,876 in all59%
  3. Gosper CountyBest late September · 49 checklists that week, 483 in all53%
  4. Cedar CountyBest early October · 25 checklists that week, 1,691 in all53%
  5. Platte CountyBest late April · 109 checklists that week, 1,287 in all47%
  6. Sherman CountyBest mid September · 12 checklists that week, 399 in all46%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Salt Lake (west)Lancaster County, best the second week of October · 24 checklists that week, 805 in all90%
  2. Lake MinatareScotts Bluff County, best the second week of September · 21 checklists that week, 383 in all87%
  3. Lake NorthPlatte County, best the second week of May · 52 checklists that week, 597 in all75%
  4. Branched Oak State Recreation AreaLancaster County, best early October · 24 checklists that week, 1,199 in all72%
  5. Newport Landing Lake (east)Douglas County, best early April · 24 checklists that week, 206 in all69%
  6. Bossung LakeGosper County, best late September · 25 checklists that week, 143 in all68%

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

Best time of day

In Nebraska, the Franklin's Gull is most often listed on checklists started between 5 and 7 pm (4.4% of those checklists).

0%2%4%6%12 am: too few checklists (60) to judge1 am: too few checklists (70) to judge2 am: too few checklists (74) to judge3 am: too few checklists (97) to judge4 am: too few checklists (318) to judge5 am: too few checklists (1382) to judge6 am: 4.6% of 6945 checklists7 am: 3.9% of 19066 checklists8 am: 3.6% of 24661 checklists9 am: 3.7% of 23438 checklists10 am: 3.5% of 20424 checklists11 am: 3.7% of 16727 checklists12 pm: 3.8% of 14774 checklists1 pm: 4.2% of 14443 checklists2 pm: 4.3% of 14830 checklists3 pm: 4.1% of 14445 checklists4 pm: 3.9% of 13353 checklists5 pm: 4.3% of 10506 checklists6 pm: 4.4% of 9208 checklists7 pm: 2.6% of 6334 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (2406) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (531) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (201) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (82) 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
January0.1%0%0%0%
February0.1%0%0.1%0.2%
March0.6%0.6%0.6%1.3%
April3.1%5.7%11%11%
May7.7%4.0%2.8%2.2%
June1.3%1.2%0.6%0.7%
July0.6%0.9%1.2%1.8%
August2.1%2.9%2.9%3.3%
September4.3%5.1%8.9%14%
October13%16%11%8.7%
November5.7%4.0%1.1%0.4%
December0.1%0.1%0%0%

Neighboring states

  • Kansas: arrives early July, 2 weeks earlier than Nebraska
  • South Dakota: arrives late March, 15 weeks earlier than Nebraska
  • Iowa: arrives mid July, in the same week than Nebraska
  • Missouri: arrives mid September, 8 weeks later than Nebraska

Common questions

When do Franklin's Gulls arrive in Nebraska?
Franklin's Gulls are winter birds in Nebraska: the first arrive in mid July, they are common by early August, peak in early October (14% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of November.
When do Franklin's Gulls leave Nebraska?
Most Franklin's Gulls have left Nebraska by the second week of November, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until mid November.
When is the best time to see a Franklin's Gull in Nebraska?
The Franklin's Gull is reported most often in early October, on about 14% of Nebraska checklists.
Where in Nebraska are Franklin's Gulls seen most often?
By county, Harlan County, Keith County, and Gosper County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Franklin's Gull (counties with at least 200 checklists).