WhenToBird

Dumetella carolinensis · Mimidae

When Do Gray Catbirds Arrive in Maryland?

Adult Gray Catbird
Photo: Melanie Gaddy, CC0 1.0 via iNaturalist

Gray Catbirds reach Maryland in mid April, are common by late April, peak in the second week of May (54% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of October.

When to look

First arrivalsApr 15-21mid April
Common byApr 22-30late April
PeakMay 8-14the second week of May
Most gone byOct 8-14the second week of October

Best: the second week of May. First arrivals mid April; most are gone by the second week of October. Peak: on about 54% of Maryland checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marnot usually seen
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novrare
  12. Decrare

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

0%20%40%60%Jan 1-7: 1.9% of 28716 checklistsJan 8-14: 1.2% of 21449 checklistsJan 15-21: 1.1% of 21267 checklistsJan 22-31: 1.2% of 29144 checklistsFeb 1-7: 1.2% of 21347 checklistsFeb 8-14: 1.2% of 22166 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.9% of 29986 checklistsFeb 22-28: 1.1% of 22427 checklistsMar 1-7: 1.0% of 21389 checklistsMar 8-14: 1.0% of 22192 checklistsMar 15-21: 1.0% of 22823 checklistsMar 22-31: 1.1% of 33720 checklistsApr 1-7: 1.2% of 25513 checklistsApr 8-14: 1.3% of 27718 checklistsApr 15-21: 5.3% of 29328 checklistsApr 22-30: 29% of 42595 checklistsMay 1-7: 56% of 38532 checklistsMay 8-14: 55% of 42722 checklistsMay 15-21: 50% of 31936 checklistsMay 22-31: 43% of 36903 checklistsJun 1-7: 39% of 23191 checklistsJun 8-14: 36% of 21853 checklistsJun 15-21: 37% of 21000 checklistsJun 22-30: 38% of 25133 checklistsJul 1-7: 40% of 18715 checklistsJul 8-14: 39% of 16376 checklistsJul 15-21: 37% of 15793 checklistsJul 22-31: 37% of 21969 checklistsAug 1-7: 38% of 16013 checklistsAug 8-14: 37% of 15249 checklistsAug 15-21: 38% of 15674 checklistsAug 22-31: 41% of 24925 checklistsSep 1-7: 45% of 19808 checklistsSep 8-14: 47% of 18513 checklistsSep 15-21: 49% of 21901 checklistsSep 22-30: 49% of 22901 checklistsOct 1-7: 42% of 19111 checklistsOct 8-14: 30% of 18482 checklistsOct 15-21: 19% of 17380 checklistsOct 22-31: 8.9% of 23992 checklistsNov 1-7: 4.4% of 17915 checklistsNov 8-14: 4.5% of 18905 checklistsNov 15-21: 2.5% of 16259 checklistsNov 22-30: 2.2% of 22852 checklistsDec 1-7: 2.0% of 16108 checklistsDec 8-14: 1.8% of 16512 checklistsDec 15-21: 2.2% of 18952 checklistsDec 22-31: 2.6% of 29728 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 Maryland 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 Maryland

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Carroll CountyBest mid May · 837 checklists that week, 26,728 in all69%
  2. Baltimore CountyBest the second week of May · 5509 checklists that week, 136,139 in all68%
  3. Montgomery CountyBest the second week of May · 7983 checklists that week, 219,548 in all67%
  4. Harford CountyBest the second week of May · 1584 checklists that week, 39,311 in all62%
  5. Howard CountyBest the second week of May · 4539 checklists that week, 118,290 in all60%
  6. Frederick CountyBest the second week of May · 2550 checklists that week, 57,576 in all59%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Gerber KnollHoward County, best mid September · 26 checklists that week, 922 in all100%
  2. Spring BranchBaltimore County, best late August · 29 checklists that week, 446 in all100%
  3. Natural Resource Man. AreaHoward County, best mid September · 61 checklists that week, 1,972 in all99%
  4. Natural Resource Man. Area (south)Howard County, best the second week of September · 21 checklists that week, 687 in all98%
  5. Lake Roland (Roland Run)Baltimore County, best mid September · 20 checklists that week, 477 in all98%

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

Best time of day

In Maryland, the Gray Catbird is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (35% of those checklists).

0%20%40%60%12 am: too few checklists (486) to judge1 am: too few checklists (451) to judge2 am: too few checklists (447) to judge3 am: too few checklists (766) to judge4 am: too few checklists (2076) to judge5 am: too few checklists (11098) to judge6 am: 41% of 56604 checklists7 am: 32% of 139255 checklists8 am: 26% of 148626 checklists9 am: 22% of 126820 checklists10 am: 18% of 106973 checklists11 am: 16% of 87483 checklists12 pm: 15% of 74808 checklists1 pm: 14% of 69428 checklists2 pm: 13% of 67800 checklists3 pm: 13% of 67688 checklists4 pm: 16% of 60927 checklists5 pm: 23% of 43876 checklists6 pm: 28% of 32930 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (19051) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (5708) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1977) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1170) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (635) 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
January1.9%1.2%1.1%1.2%
February1.2%1.2%0.9%1.1%
March1.0%1.0%1.0%1.1%
April1.2%1.3%5.3%29%
May56%55%50%43%
June39%36%37%38%
July40%39%37%37%
August38%37%38%41%
September45%47%49%49%
October42%30%19%8.9%
November4.4%4.5%2.5%2.2%
December2.0%1.8%2.2%2.6%

Neighboring states

  • District of Columbia: arrives mid April, in the same week than Maryland
  • Delaware: arrives mid April, in the same week than Maryland
  • Virginia: arrives the second week of April, 1 week earlier than Maryland
  • Pennsylvania: arrives mid April, in the same week than Maryland

Common questions

When do Gray Catbirds arrive in Maryland?
Gray Catbirds reach Maryland in mid April, are common by late April, peak in the second week of May (54% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of October.
When do Gray Catbirds leave Maryland?
Most Gray Catbirds have left Maryland by the second week of October, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until early November.
When is the best time to see a Gray Catbird in Maryland?
The Gray Catbird is reported most often in the second week of May, on about 54% of Maryland checklists.
Where in Maryland are Gray Catbirds seen most often?
By county, Carroll County, Baltimore County, and Montgomery County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Gray Catbird (counties with at least 200 checklists).