WhenToBird

Dumetella carolinensis · Mimidae

When Do Gray Catbirds Arrive in North Carolina?

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

Gray Catbirds are in North Carolina all year, but most are here in summer: numbers build from late June, peak in late September (32% of checklists), and fall back by the second week of October. In the quietest week (late February) they are still on about 2.3% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildJun 22-30late June
PeakSep 22-30late September
Fall back byOct 8-14the second week of October
FewestFeb 22-28late February

Best: late September. Here all year; numbers build from late June and fall back by the second week of October. Peak: on about 32% of North Carolina checklists.

  1. Janrare
  2. Febrare
  3. Marrare
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novuncommon
  12. Decrare

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

0%10%20%30%40%Jan 1-7: 2.9% of 30085 checklistsJan 8-14: 2.6% of 22728 checklistsJan 15-21: 3.2% of 24292 checklistsJan 22-31: 2.9% of 34122 checklistsFeb 1-7: 3.0% of 26352 checklistsFeb 8-14: 2.4% of 29663 checklistsFeb 15-21: 2.1% of 41515 checklistsFeb 22-28: 2.7% of 24318 checklistsMar 1-7: 2.4% of 23408 checklistsMar 8-14: 2.7% of 22658 checklistsMar 15-21: 2.3% of 22784 checklistsMar 22-31: 2.7% of 36034 checklistsApr 1-7: 3.1% of 28131 checklistsApr 8-14: 4.8% of 29190 checklistsApr 15-21: 13% of 32847 checklistsApr 22-30: 28% of 47966 checklistsMay 1-7: 31% of 37076 checklistsMay 8-14: 27% of 36228 checklistsMay 15-21: 20% of 30378 checklistsMay 22-31: 18% of 40237 checklistsJun 1-7: 17% of 27551 checklistsJun 8-14: 17% of 26473 checklistsJun 15-21: 17% of 22789 checklistsJun 22-30: 17% of 27615 checklistsJul 1-7: 18% of 20022 checklistsJul 8-14: 18% of 19315 checklistsJul 15-21: 18% of 18934 checklistsJul 22-31: 18% of 25600 checklistsAug 1-7: 18% of 17987 checklistsAug 8-14: 18% of 17307 checklistsAug 15-21: 19% of 17080 checklistsAug 22-31: 20% of 25844 checklistsSep 1-7: 22% of 20818 checklistsSep 8-14: 25% of 20070 checklistsSep 15-21: 30% of 21984 checklistsSep 22-30: 33% of 26979 checklistsOct 1-7: 33% of 22605 checklistsOct 8-14: 23% of 22677 checklistsOct 15-21: 17% of 21407 checklistsOct 22-31: 10% of 25927 checklistsNov 1-7: 5.7% of 18830 checklistsNov 8-14: 4.5% of 18418 checklistsNov 15-21: 4.7% of 19101 checklistsNov 22-30: 3.8% of 25709 checklistsDec 1-7: 3.8% of 18856 checklistsDec 8-14: 3.6% of 18745 checklistsDec 15-21: 3.6% of 22478 checklistsDec 22-31: 4.2% of 34796 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 North Carolina 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 North Carolina

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Watauga CountyBest the second week of September · 546 checklists that week, 24,164 in all53%
  2. Orange CountyBest late September · 1852 checklists that week, 69,048 in all52%
  3. Henderson CountyBest mid September · 863 checklists that week, 33,437 in all51%
  4. Hertford CountyBest early May · 24 checklists that week, 1,343 in all48%
  5. Gates CountyBest early October · 80 checklists that week, 4,066 in all48%
  6. Tyrrell CountyBest the second week of October · 24 checklists that week, 2,289 in all46%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Princess PlaceNew Hanover County, best the second week of October · 49 checklists that week, 742 in all99%
  2. Trout Lake (northeast)Watauga County, best late May · 23 checklists that week, 322 in all98%
  3. Trout LakeWatauga County, best mid August · 41 checklists that week, 1,478 in all97%
  4. City of Greensboro - Hamilton Lakes ParkGuilford County, best mid May · 34 checklists that week, 511 in all95%
  5. New Hanover County ParkNew Hanover County, best late April · 40 checklists that week, 1,171 in all94%

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

Best time of day

In North Carolina, the Gray Catbird is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (20% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%12 am: too few checklists (520) to judge1 am: too few checklists (489) to judge2 am: too few checklists (442) to judge3 am: too few checklists (544) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1621) to judge5 am: too few checklists (9671) to judge6 am: 22% of 50335 checklists7 am: 20% of 150152 checklists8 am: 17% of 182902 checklists9 am: 14% of 158933 checklists10 am: 11% of 128398 checklists11 am: 9.6% of 98671 checklists12 pm: 9.1% of 78640 checklists1 pm: 8.7% of 72510 checklists2 pm: 8.2% of 69179 checklists3 pm: 8.3% of 67669 checklists4 pm: 9.5% of 63964 checklists5 pm: 13% of 48520 checklists6 pm: 13% of 33196 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (19700) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (6160) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1943) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1119) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (651) 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
January2.9%2.6%3.2%2.9%
February3.0%2.4%2.1%2.7%
March2.4%2.7%2.3%2.7%
April3.1%4.8%13%28%
May31%27%20%18%
June17%17%17%17%
July18%18%18%18%
August18%18%19%20%
September22%25%30%33%
October33%23%17%10%
November5.7%4.5%4.7%3.8%
December3.8%3.6%3.6%4.2%

Neighboring states

  • South Carolina: arrives late September, 12 weeks later than North Carolina
  • Virginia: arrives the second week of April, 10 weeks earlier than North Carolina
  • West Virginia: arrives mid April, 9 weeks earlier than North Carolina
  • District of Columbia: arrives mid April, 9 weeks earlier than North Carolina

Common questions

When do Gray Catbirds arrive in North Carolina?
Gray Catbirds are in North Carolina all year, but most are here in summer: numbers build from late June, peak in late September (32% of checklists), and fall back by the second week of October. In the quietest week (late February) they are still on about 2.3% of checklists.
When do Gray Catbirds leave North Carolina?
Gray Catbirds never fully leave North Carolina: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by the second week of October, but some are still reported in every week, about 2.3% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Gray Catbird in North Carolina?
The Gray Catbird is reported most often in late September, on about 32% of North Carolina checklists.
Where in North Carolina are Gray Catbirds seen most often?
By county, Watauga County, Orange County, and Henderson County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Gray Catbird (counties with at least 200 checklists).