WhenToBird

Zonotrichia atricapilla · Passerellidae

When Do Golden-crowned Sparrows Arrive in Oregon?

Adult Golden-crowned Sparrow
Photo: Kevin Krebs, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Golden-crowned Sparrows are winter birds in Oregon: the first arrive in the second week of September, they are common by mid September, peak in early December (28% of checklists), and most are gone by early May.

When to look

First arrivalsSep 8-14the second week of September
Common bySep 15-21mid September
PeakDec 1-7early December
Most gone byMay 1-7early May

Best: early December. First arrivals the second week of September; most are gone by early May. Peak: on about 28% of Oregon checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maycommon
  6. Junnot usually seen
  7. Julnot usually seen
  8. Augnot usually seen
  9. Sepcommon
  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: 26% of 34973 checklistsJan 8-14: 25% of 26807 checklistsJan 15-21: 24% of 26567 checklistsJan 22-31: 24% of 36019 checklistsFeb 1-7: 23% of 24020 checklistsFeb 8-14: 23% of 25765 checklistsFeb 15-21: 21% of 31019 checklistsFeb 22-28: 22% of 24582 checklistsMar 1-7: 22% of 24834 checklistsMar 8-14: 21% of 24642 checklistsMar 15-21: 20% of 27420 checklistsMar 22-31: 20% of 39913 checklistsApr 1-7: 22% of 28817 checklistsApr 8-14: 24% of 31221 checklistsApr 15-21: 25% of 34402 checklistsApr 22-30: 22% of 47144 checklistsMay 1-7: 13% of 37716 checklistsMay 8-14: 4.4% of 39651 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.9% of 37496 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.1% of 56967 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.1% of 35893 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.1% of 31880 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.1% of 30942 checklistsJun 22-30: 0% of 38478 checklistsJul 1-7: 0% of 27409 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.1% of 25161 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.1% of 25473 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.1% of 33920 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.1% of 24310 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.1% of 23675 checklistsAug 15-21: 0% of 23623 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.1% of 33762 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.6% of 25120 checklistsSep 8-14: 3.4% of 24458 checklistsSep 15-21: 12% of 25528 checklistsSep 22-30: 21% of 31631 checklistsOct 1-7: 25% of 25498 checklistsOct 8-14: 27% of 25161 checklistsOct 15-21: 26% of 23701 checklistsOct 22-31: 28% of 30996 checklistsNov 1-7: 27% of 21089 checklistsNov 8-14: 27% of 21880 checklistsNov 15-21: 27% of 21501 checklistsNov 22-30: 28% of 28930 checklistsDec 1-7: 30% of 19807 checklistsDec 8-14: 28% of 21022 checklistsDec 15-21: 27% of 24817 checklistsDec 22-31: 27% 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. Columbia CountyBest the second week of December · 443 checklists that week, 27,750 in all66%
  2. Jackson CountyBest late October · 1273 checklists that week, 60,428 in all54%
  3. Josephine CountyBest mid October · 358 checklists that week, 20,837 in all48%
  4. Lane CountyBest late November · 4135 checklists that week, 190,610 in all39%
  5. Yamhill CountyBest the second week of October · 187 checklists that week, 11,537 in all34%
  6. Hood River CountyBest the second week of December · 98 checklists that week, 9,695 in all33%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Military Slough Reservoirs (Cable Reservoir)Jackson County, best late November · 20 checklists that week, 774 in all100%
  2. Guiles LakeColumbia County, best early December · 139 checklists that week, 2,621 in all97%
  3. Willamette Heights OverlookLane County, best late October · 24 checklists that week, 121 in all96%
  4. Military Slough Reservoirs (Little Butte Creek)Jackson County, best mid January · 25 checklists that week, 1,170 in all96%
  5. North Mountain ParkJackson County, best mid November · 23 checklists that week, 1,170 in all93%
  6. Crown Zellerbach TrailColumbia County, best late March · 34 checklists that week, 1,097 in all92%

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

Best time of day

In Oregon, the Golden-crowned Sparrow is most often listed on checklists started between 8 and 10 am (18% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%20%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: 7.3% of 50677 checklists7 am: 16% of 125347 checklists8 am: 19% of 163668 checklists9 am: 18% of 160351 checklists10 am: 16% of 148940 checklists11 am: 15% of 124743 checklists12 pm: 14% of 112537 checklists1 pm: 14% of 98999 checklists2 pm: 14% of 94690 checklists3 pm: 16% of 87923 checklists4 pm: 18% of 75235 checklists5 pm: 14% of 54504 checklists6 pm: 12% of 40469 checklists7 pm: 6.8% 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
January26%25%24%24%
February23%23%21%22%
March22%21%20%20%
April22%24%25%22%
May13%4.4%0.9%0.1%
June0.1%0.1%0.1%0%
July0%0.1%0.1%0.1%
August0.1%0.1%0%0.1%
September0.6%3.4%12%21%
October25%27%26%28%
November27%27%27%28%
December30%28%27%27%

Neighboring states

  • Washington: arrives the second week of September, in the same week than Oregon
  • Nevada: arrives late September, 2 weeks later than Oregon
  • California: arrives mid September, 1 week later than Oregon
  • Alaska: arrives the second week of April, 20 weeks earlier than Oregon

Common questions

When do Golden-crowned Sparrows arrive in Oregon?
Golden-crowned Sparrows are winter birds in Oregon: the first arrive in the second week of September, they are common by mid September, peak in early December (28% of checklists), and most are gone by early May.
When do Golden-crowned Sparrows leave Oregon?
Most Golden-crowned Sparrows have left Oregon by early May, 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 Golden-crowned Sparrow in Oregon?
The Golden-crowned Sparrow is reported most often in early December, on about 28% of Oregon checklists.
Where in Oregon are Golden-crowned Sparrows seen most often?
By county, Columbia County, Jackson County, and Josephine County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Golden-crowned Sparrow (counties with at least 200 checklists).