WhenToBird

Larus glaucescens · Laridae

When Do Glaucous-winged Gulls Arrive in Oregon?

Adult Glaucous-winged Gull
Photo: Scott Veirs, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Glaucous-winged Gulls are winter birds in Oregon: the first arrive in early July, they are common by the second week of September, peak in early January (10% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of March.

When to look

First arrivalsJul 1-7early July
Common bySep 8-14the second week of September
PeakJan 1-7early January
Most gone byMar 8-14the second week of March

Best: early January. First arrivals early July; most are gone by the second week of March. Peak: on about 10% of Oregon checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marcommon
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Junrare
  7. Juluncommon
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%5%10%15%Jan 1-7: 11% of 34973 checklistsJan 8-14: 9.6% of 26807 checklistsJan 15-21: 9.2% of 26567 checklistsJan 22-31: 9.0% of 36019 checklistsFeb 1-7: 8.6% of 24020 checklistsFeb 8-14: 6.6% of 25765 checklistsFeb 15-21: 5.8% of 31019 checklistsFeb 22-28: 6.2% of 24582 checklistsMar 1-7: 5.3% of 24834 checklistsMar 8-14: 4.0% of 24642 checklistsMar 15-21: 3.4% of 27420 checklistsMar 22-31: 3.1% of 39913 checklistsApr 1-7: 2.5% of 28817 checklistsApr 8-14: 2.6% of 31221 checklistsApr 15-21: 2.4% of 34402 checklistsApr 22-30: 2.6% of 47144 checklistsMay 1-7: 2.5% of 37716 checklistsMay 8-14: 1.7% of 39651 checklistsMay 15-21: 1.6% of 37496 checklistsMay 22-31: 1.1% of 56967 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.9% of 35893 checklistsJun 8-14: 1.1% of 31880 checklistsJun 15-21: 1.2% of 30942 checklistsJun 22-30: 1.4% of 38478 checklistsJul 1-7: 1.7% of 27409 checklistsJul 8-14: 2.1% of 25161 checklistsJul 15-21: 2.3% of 25473 checklistsJul 22-31: 2.6% of 33920 checklistsAug 1-7: 2.9% of 24310 checklistsAug 8-14: 3.0% of 23675 checklistsAug 15-21: 3.2% of 23623 checklistsAug 22-31: 3.2% of 33762 checklistsSep 1-7: 3.3% of 25120 checklistsSep 8-14: 4.1% of 24458 checklistsSep 15-21: 4.3% of 25528 checklistsSep 22-30: 4.6% of 31631 checklistsOct 1-7: 4.4% of 25498 checklistsOct 8-14: 5.8% of 25161 checklistsOct 15-21: 6.4% of 23701 checklistsOct 22-31: 8.6% of 30996 checklistsNov 1-7: 9.5% of 21089 checklistsNov 8-14: 9.7% of 21880 checklistsNov 15-21: 10% of 21501 checklistsNov 22-30: 9.9% of 28930 checklistsDec 1-7: 9.8% of 19807 checklistsDec 8-14: 9.3% of 21022 checklistsDec 15-21: 9.5% of 24817 checklistsDec 22-31: 10% of 37592 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 Oregon 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 Oregon

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Tillamook CountyBest late November · 986 checklists that week, 45,809 in all30%
  2. Lincoln CountyBest early January · 1465 checklists that week, 66,994 in all29%
  3. Sherman CountyBest early November · 153 checklists that week, 4,629 in all27%
  4. Hood River CountyBest early November · 144 checklists that week, 9,695 in all26%
  5. Wasco CountyBest early November · 142 checklists that week, 13,127 in all25%
  6. Clatsop CountyBest late December · 979 checklists that week, 44,300 in all25%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Clackamette ParkClackamas County, best late October · 20 checklists that week, 454 in all94%
  2. Harbor View City ParkMultnomah County, best early November · 35 checklists that week, 905 in all93%
  3. Neptune State Scenic ViewpointLane County, best late January · 34 checklists that week, 688 in all87%
  4. Willamette RiverMultnomah County, best the second week of November · 20 checklists that week, 579 in all86%
  5. Lone Pine IslandWasco County, best late October · 30 checklists that week, 303 in all82%

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

Best time of day

In Oregon, the Glaucous-winged Gull is most often listed on checklists started between 1 and 3 pm (6.4% of those checklists).

0%2%4%6%8%12 am: too few checklists (1505) to judge1 am: too few checklists (675) to judge2 am: too few checklists (626) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1641) to judge4 am: too few checklists (3696) to judge5 am: too few checklists (14524) to judge6 am: 2.1% of 50677 checklists7 am: 4.2% of 125347 checklists8 am: 5.2% of 163668 checklists9 am: 5.2% of 160351 checklists10 am: 5.5% of 148940 checklists11 am: 5.8% of 124743 checklists12 pm: 5.9% of 112537 checklists1 pm: 6.4% of 98999 checklists2 pm: 6.4% of 94690 checklists3 pm: 5.7% of 87923 checklists4 pm: 3.8% of 75235 checklists5 pm: 2.3% of 54504 checklists6 pm: 1.5% of 40469 checklists7 pm: 1.0% of 33675 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (18715) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (5839) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (2704) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (1549) 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
January11%9.6%9.2%9.0%
February8.6%6.6%5.8%6.2%
March5.3%4.0%3.4%3.1%
April2.5%2.6%2.4%2.6%
May2.5%1.7%1.6%1.1%
June0.9%1.1%1.2%1.4%
July1.7%2.1%2.3%2.6%
August2.9%3.0%3.2%3.2%
September3.3%4.1%4.3%4.6%
October4.4%5.8%6.4%8.6%
November9.5%9.7%10%9.9%
December9.8%9.3%9.5%10%

Neighboring states

  • Washington: year-round, peaks late November
  • California: arrives mid October, 14 weeks later than Oregon
  • Alaska: year-round, peaks late September

Common questions

When do Glaucous-winged Gulls arrive in Oregon?
Glaucous-winged Gulls are winter birds in Oregon: the first arrive in early July, they are common by the second week of September, peak in early January (10% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of March.
When do Glaucous-winged Gulls leave Oregon?
Most Glaucous-winged Gulls have left Oregon by the second week of March, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until the second week of May.
When is the best time to see a Glaucous-winged Gull in Oregon?
The Glaucous-winged Gull is reported most often in early January, on about 10% of Oregon checklists.
Where in Oregon are Glaucous-winged Gulls seen most often?
By county, Tillamook County, Lincoln County, and Sherman County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Glaucous-winged Gull (counties with at least 200 checklists).