WhenToBird

Aquila chrysaetos · Accipitridae

When Do Golden Eagles Arrive in Nevada?

Adult Golden Eagle
Photo: Anne Parsons, CC0 1.0 via iNaturalist

The Golden Eagle is in Nevada all year. It turns up on about 1.5% of checklists at its peak (late July) and on 0.9% in its quietest week (mid May).

When to look

PresentAll year
Peak weekJul 22-31late July
Quietest weekMay 15-21mid May

Best: late July. Here all year. Peak: on about 1.5% of Nevada checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maycommon
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julpeak season
  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%0.5%1%1.5%2%Jan 1-7: 1.2% of 5121 checklistsJan 8-14: 1.3% of 3908 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.9% of 4000 checklistsJan 22-31: 1.4% of 4991 checklistsFeb 1-7: 1.2% of 3377 checklistsFeb 8-14: 1.4% of 3747 checklistsFeb 15-21: 1.1% of 4852 checklistsFeb 22-28: 1.6% of 3712 checklistsMar 1-7: 1.4% of 3745 checklistsMar 8-14: 1.5% of 3763 checklistsMar 15-21: 1.1% of 4188 checklistsMar 22-31: 1.3% of 6027 checklistsApr 1-7: 1.2% of 4679 checklistsApr 8-14: 1.1% of 4609 checklistsApr 15-21: 1.2% of 4709 checklistsApr 22-30: 1.2% of 6984 checklistsMay 1-7: 1.0% of 5702 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.8% of 5928 checklistsMay 15-21: 1.1% of 5353 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.9% of 7352 checklistsJun 1-7: 1.2% of 4360 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.9% of 4183 checklistsJun 15-21: 1.4% of 3751 checklistsJun 22-30: 1.0% of 4126 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.8% of 3231 checklistsJul 8-14: 1.0% of 3024 checklistsJul 15-21: 1.5% of 2967 checklistsJul 22-31: 1.7% of 4212 checklistsAug 1-7: 1.3% of 2828 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.8% of 3036 checklistsAug 15-21: 1.3% of 3076 checklistsAug 22-31: 1.2% of 4345 checklistsSep 1-7: 1.2% of 3369 checklistsSep 8-14: 1.4% of 3728 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.2% of 3535 checklistsSep 22-30: 1.1% of 5028 checklistsOct 1-7: 1.2% of 3976 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.9% of 3781 checklistsOct 15-21: 1.2% of 3577 checklistsOct 22-31: 1.5% of 4986 checklistsNov 1-7: 1.3% of 3592 checklistsNov 8-14: 1.4% of 3685 checklistsNov 15-21: 1.1% of 3399 checklistsNov 22-30: 1.2% of 4544 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.9% of 3162 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.9% of 3191 checklistsDec 15-21: 1.6% of 3615 checklistsDec 22-31: 1.2% of 5101 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 Nevada 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 Nevada

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Lander CountyBest the second week of October · 16 checklists that week, 1,413 in all11%
  2. Storey CountyBest the second week of November · 18 checklists that week, 1,593 in all9.7%
  3. Eureka CountyBest late August · 12 checklists that week, 530 in all8.6%
  4. Pershing CountyBest early December · 11 checklists that week, 1,407 in all8.2%
  5. Elko CountyBest late July · 592 checklists that week, 8,844 in all8.0%
  6. Humboldt CountyBest early November · 10 checklists that week, 2,523 in all6.5%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Mount PisgahElko County, best late October · 22 checklists that week, 309 in all25%
  2. Island LakeElko County, best late July · 62 checklists that week, 340 in all23%
  3. Truckee River OutletWashoe County, best the second week of January · 20 checklists that week, 369 in all19%
  4. Island Lake (southeast)Elko County, best late July · 38 checklists that week, 138 in all11%
  5. South Fork ReservoirElko County, best mid July · 20 checklists that week, 215 in all8.3%
  6. Thomas CanyonElko County, best early July · 25 checklists that week, 226 in all7.5%

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

Best time of day

In Nevada, the Golden Eagle is most often listed on checklists started between 10 am and 12 pm (1.6% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%1.5%2%12 am: too few checklists (114) to judge1 am: too few checklists (99) to judge2 am: too few checklists (71) to judge3 am: too few checklists (108) to judge4 am: too few checklists (459) to judge5 am: 1.7% of 4313 checklists6 am: 0.6% of 17070 checklists7 am: 0.8% of 27389 checklists8 am: 1.1% of 24858 checklists9 am: 1.5% of 22012 checklists10 am: 1.5% of 19284 checklists11 am: 1.7% of 15592 checklists12 pm: 1.3% of 12432 checklists1 pm: 1.3% of 11386 checklists2 pm: 1.4% of 11262 checklists3 pm: 1.0% of 10721 checklists4 pm: 0.9% of 9090 checklists5 pm: 1.2% of 6397 checklists6 pm: 0.7% of 5012 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (3026) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (905) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (271) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (164) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (120) 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
January1.2%1.3%0.9%1.4%
February1.2%1.4%1.1%1.6%
March1.4%1.5%1.1%1.3%
April1.2%1.1%1.2%1.2%
May1.0%0.8%1.1%0.9%
June1.2%0.9%1.4%1.0%
July0.8%1.0%1.5%1.7%
August1.3%0.8%1.3%1.2%
September1.2%1.4%1.2%1.1%
October1.2%0.9%1.2%1.5%
November1.3%1.4%1.1%1.2%
December0.9%0.9%1.6%1.2%

Neighboring states

  • California: winter visitor, peaks mid January
  • Utah: winter visitor, peaks early March
  • Idaho: winter visitor, peaks mid January
  • Wyoming: winter visitor, peaks late February

Common questions

When do Golden Eagles arrive in Nevada?
The Golden Eagle is in Nevada all year. It turns up on about 1.5% of checklists at its peak (late July) and on 0.9% in its quietest week (mid May).
When do Golden Eagles leave Nevada?
The Golden Eagle does not leave Nevada: it is reported all year, from 0.9% of checklists in mid May to 1.5% in late July.
When is the best time to see a Golden Eagle in Nevada?
The Golden Eagle is reported most often in late July, on about 1.5% of Nevada checklists.
Where in Nevada are Golden Eagles seen most often?
By county, Lander County, Storey County, and Eureka County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Golden Eagle (counties with at least 200 checklists).