WhenToBird

Regulus satrapa · Regulidae

When Do Golden-crowned Kinglets Arrive in California?

Adult Golden-crowned Kinglet
Photo: sprcrkwild, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Golden-crowned Kinglets reach California in mid April, are common by the second week of May, peak in mid June (2.4% of checklists), and most are gone by early February.

When to look

First arrivalsApr 15-21mid April
Common byMay 8-14the second week of May
PeakJun 15-21mid June
Most gone byFeb 1-7early February

Best: mid June. First arrivals mid April; most are gone by early February. Peak: on about 2.4% of California checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Maruncommon
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Maycommon
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Deccommon

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

0%1%2%3%Jan 1-7: 1.3% of 112336 checklistsJan 8-14: 1.2% of 85518 checklistsJan 15-21: 1.2% of 86488 checklistsJan 22-31: 1.2% of 116174 checklistsFeb 1-7: 1.0% of 75171 checklistsFeb 8-14: 1.0% of 84467 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.9% of 105683 checklistsFeb 22-28: 1.0% of 83396 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.9% of 77470 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.9% of 75180 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.9% of 80770 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.8% of 114116 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.7% of 84057 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.8% of 83692 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.8% of 89242 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.9% of 114289 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.9% of 85728 checklistsMay 8-14: 1.1% of 91984 checklistsMay 15-21: 1.2% of 75478 checklistsMay 22-31: 1.6% of 106250 checklistsJun 1-7: 2.0% of 70051 checklistsJun 8-14: 2.2% of 67485 checklistsJun 15-21: 2.6% of 66269 checklistsJun 22-30: 2.4% of 79172 checklistsJul 1-7: 2.0% of 62877 checklistsJul 8-14: 1.8% of 60328 checklistsJul 15-21: 1.5% of 59705 checklistsJul 22-31: 1.4% of 83796 checklistsAug 1-7: 1.1% of 60215 checklistsAug 8-14: 1.1% of 60172 checklistsAug 15-21: 1.1% of 59877 checklistsAug 22-31: 1.1% of 89107 checklistsSep 1-7: 1.0% of 72000 checklistsSep 8-14: 1.0% of 71228 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.0% of 76808 checklistsSep 22-30: 1.3% of 100204 checklistsOct 1-7: 1.7% of 76571 checklistsOct 8-14: 1.9% of 80874 checklistsOct 15-21: 2.4% of 74581 checklistsOct 22-31: 2.2% of 97498 checklistsNov 1-7: 2.2% of 70851 checklistsNov 8-14: 2.1% of 72431 checklistsNov 15-21: 1.6% of 66767 checklistsNov 22-30: 1.7% of 94737 checklistsDec 1-7: 1.4% of 65393 checklistsDec 8-14: 1.6% of 67449 checklistsDec 15-21: 1.7% of 83421 checklistsDec 22-31: 1.6% of 124993 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 California 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 California

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Fresno CountyBest late June · 724 checklists that week, 29,788 in all23%
  2. Humboldt CountyBest the second week of October · 1962 checklists that week, 95,963 in all19%
  3. Tulare CountyBest mid June · 777 checklists that week, 28,366 in all19%
  4. Del Norte CountyBest the second week of October · 262 checklists that week, 16,363 in all18%
  5. Calaveras CountyBest late May · 268 checklists that week, 6,843 in all17%
  6. El Dorado CountyBest mid June · 759 checklists that week, 25,075 in all17%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Hiller Park Playground and Picnic AreaHumboldt County, best late September · 23 checklists that week, 452 in all89%
  2. Cooper Gulch ParkHumboldt County, best mid September · 45 checklists that week, 724 in all81%
  3. Sequoia ParkHumboldt County, best late April · 20 checklists that week, 322 in all68%
  4. Vinum ParkHumboldt County, best early October · 70 checklists that week, 503 in all67%
  5. General Grant GroveFresno County, best late June · 21 checklists that week, 209 in all66%
  6. Sequoia National ParkTulare County, best mid June · 32 checklists that week, 433 in all65%

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

Best time of day

In California, the Golden-crowned Kinglet is most often listed on checklists started between 8 and 10 am (1.5% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%1.5%2%12 am: too few checklists (1688) to judge1 am: too few checklists (1451) to judge2 am: too few checklists (1402) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1743) to judge4 am: too few checklists (4647) to judge5 am: too few checklists (32158) to judge6 am: 1.3% of 186053 checklists7 am: 1.5% of 444086 checklists8 am: 1.5% of 535846 checklists9 am: 1.5% of 486061 checklists10 am: 1.5% of 411130 checklists11 am: 1.5% of 325798 checklists12 pm: 1.5% of 269132 checklists1 pm: 1.4% of 244762 checklists2 pm: 1.3% of 235420 checklists3 pm: 1.1% of 232365 checklists4 pm: 0.9% of 208688 checklists5 pm: 0.7% of 146104 checklists6 pm: 0.6% of 96867 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (50942) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (14803) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (5561) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (3546) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (2092) 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
January1.3%1.2%1.2%1.2%
February1.0%1.0%0.9%1.0%
March0.9%0.9%0.9%0.8%
April0.7%0.8%0.8%0.9%
May0.9%1.1%1.2%1.6%
June2.0%2.2%2.6%2.4%
July2.0%1.8%1.5%1.4%
August1.1%1.1%1.1%1.1%
September1.0%1.0%1.0%1.3%
October1.7%1.9%2.4%2.2%
November2.2%2.1%1.6%1.7%
December1.4%1.6%1.7%1.6%

Neighboring states

  • Nevada: arrives mid September, 20 weeks later than California
  • Utah: arrives early June, 6 weeks later than California
  • Oregon: arrives late September, 21 weeks later than California
  • Idaho: arrives mid May, 4 weeks later than California

Common questions

When do Golden-crowned Kinglets arrive in California?
Golden-crowned Kinglets reach California in mid April, are common by the second week of May, peak in mid June (2.4% of checklists), and most are gone by early February.
When do Golden-crowned Kinglets leave California?
Most Golden-crowned Kinglets have left California by early February, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until mid March.
When is the best time to see a Golden-crowned Kinglet in California?
The Golden-crowned Kinglet is reported most often in mid June, on about 2.4% of California checklists.
Where in California are Golden-crowned Kinglets seen most often?
By county, Fresno County, Humboldt County, and Tulare County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Golden-crowned Kinglet (counties with at least 200 checklists).