WhenToBird

Larus glaucescens · Laridae

When Do Glaucous-winged Gulls Arrive in Washington?

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

The Glaucous-winged Gull is in Washington all year. It turns up on about 24% of checklists at its peak (late November) and on 10% in its quietest week (the second week of June).

When to look

PresentAll year
Peak weekNov 22-30late November
Quietest weekJun 8-14the second week of June

Best: late November. Here all year. Peak: on about 24% of Washington checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maycommon
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%10%20%30%Jan 1-7: 23% of 41928 checklistsJan 8-14: 22% of 31152 checklistsJan 15-21: 21% of 31753 checklistsJan 22-31: 21% of 42530 checklistsFeb 1-7: 21% of 29739 checklistsFeb 8-14: 18% of 32746 checklistsFeb 15-21: 18% of 40328 checklistsFeb 22-28: 19% of 28432 checklistsMar 1-7: 18% of 30758 checklistsMar 8-14: 18% of 29368 checklistsMar 15-21: 17% of 32580 checklistsMar 22-31: 16% of 45614 checklistsApr 1-7: 16% of 33997 checklistsApr 8-14: 16% of 34729 checklistsApr 15-21: 16% of 38474 checklistsApr 22-30: 15% of 52185 checklistsMay 1-7: 13% of 44236 checklistsMay 8-14: 12% of 48708 checklistsMay 15-21: 12% of 41742 checklistsMay 22-31: 11% of 57082 checklistsJun 1-7: 10% of 39193 checklistsJun 8-14: 9.9% of 36042 checklistsJun 15-21: 10% of 34003 checklistsJun 22-30: 11% of 39711 checklistsJul 1-7: 12% of 31949 checklistsJul 8-14: 14% of 29086 checklistsJul 15-21: 15% of 28045 checklistsJul 22-31: 17% of 38275 checklistsAug 1-7: 18% of 28846 checklistsAug 8-14: 18% of 28036 checklistsAug 15-21: 18% of 27614 checklistsAug 22-31: 18% of 40356 checklistsSep 1-7: 18% of 31214 checklistsSep 8-14: 19% of 27795 checklistsSep 15-21: 19% of 29677 checklistsSep 22-30: 19% of 35241 checklistsOct 1-7: 19% of 28605 checklistsOct 8-14: 20% of 28655 checklistsOct 15-21: 21% of 24643 checklistsOct 22-31: 23% of 34874 checklistsNov 1-7: 23% of 25658 checklistsNov 8-14: 23% of 25700 checklistsNov 15-21: 23% of 24331 checklistsNov 22-30: 24% of 32784 checklistsDec 1-7: 24% of 24099 checklistsDec 8-14: 23% of 23339 checklistsDec 15-21: 22% of 27666 checklistsDec 22-31: 22% of 42130 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 Washington 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 Washington

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. San Juan CountyBest the second week of January · 520 checklists that week, 35,337 in all40%
  2. Jefferson CountyBest late October · 1299 checklists that week, 59,663 in all39%
  3. Clallam CountyBest mid November · 1225 checklists that week, 85,362 in all38%
  4. Whatcom CountyBest early December · 948 checklists that week, 64,687 in all37%
  5. Snohomish CountyBest late November · 2852 checklists that week, 131,467 in all36%
  6. Kitsap CountyBest the second week of August · 1196 checklists that week, 74,545 in all32%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Miller CreekKing County, best late June · 21 checklists that week, 836 in all100%
  2. Yellow IslandSan Juan County, best early April · 25 checklists that week, 757 in all98%
  3. Tenth St. Boat LaunchSnohomish County, best the second week of December · 23 checklists that week, 1,448 in all95%
  4. Japanese GulchSnohomish County, best late September · 21 checklists that week, 578 in all94%
  5. Jackson Beach ParkSan Juan County, best late December · 23 checklists that week, 832 in all93%
  6. Lighthouse Marine ParkWhatcom County, best early September · 28 checklists that week, 1,449 in all93%

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

Best time of day

In Washington, the Glaucous-winged Gull is most often listed on checklists started between 1 and 3 pm (19% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%20%12 am: too few checklists (796) to judge1 am: too few checklists (776) to judge2 am: too few checklists (709) to judge3 am: too few checklists (901) to judge4 am: too few checklists (3221) to judge5 am: too few checklists (16576) to judge6 am: 18% of 56744 checklists7 am: 18% of 133294 checklists8 am: 18% of 184196 checklists9 am: 18% of 186303 checklists10 am: 19% of 177063 checklists11 am: 19% of 154936 checklists12 pm: 18% of 138061 checklists1 pm: 19% of 127449 checklists2 pm: 19% of 121511 checklists3 pm: 18% of 107793 checklists4 pm: 15% of 82862 checklists5 pm: 13% of 57183 checklists6 pm: 11% of 39886 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (26969) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (12427) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (3658) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1500) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (834) 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
January23%22%21%21%
February21%18%18%19%
March18%18%17%16%
April16%16%16%15%
May13%12%12%11%
June10%9.9%10%11%
July12%14%15%17%
August18%18%18%18%
September18%19%19%19%
October19%20%21%23%
November23%23%23%24%
December24%23%22%22%

Neighboring states

  • Oregon: winter visitor, peaks early January
  • California: winter visitor, peaks early December
  • Alaska: year-round, peaks late September

Common questions

When do Glaucous-winged Gulls arrive in Washington?
The Glaucous-winged Gull is in Washington all year. It turns up on about 24% of checklists at its peak (late November) and on 10% in its quietest week (the second week of June).
When do Glaucous-winged Gulls leave Washington?
The Glaucous-winged Gull does not leave Washington: it is reported all year, from 10% of checklists in the second week of June to 24% in late November.
When is the best time to see a Glaucous-winged Gull in Washington?
The Glaucous-winged Gull is reported most often in late November, on about 24% of Washington checklists.
Where in Washington are Glaucous-winged Gulls seen most often?
By county, San Juan County, Jefferson County, and Clallam County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Glaucous-winged Gull (counties with at least 200 checklists).