WhenToBird

Catharus minimus · Turdidae

When Do Gray-cheeked Thrushes Arrive in Virginia?

Adult Gray-cheeked Thrush
Photo: Jonathan Layman, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Gray-cheeked Thrushes mostly pass through Virginia: they arrive in mid September, peak in early October (1.5% of checklists), and most are gone by mid October.

When to look

First arrivalsSep 15-21mid September
Common bySep 15-21mid September
PeakOct 1-7early October
Most gone byOct 15-21mid October

Best: early October. First arrivals mid September; most are gone by mid October. Peak: on about 1.5% of Virginia checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marnot usually seen
  4. Aprrare
  5. Maycommon
  6. Junrare
  7. Julnot usually seen
  8. Augnot usually seen
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novnot usually seen
  12. Decnot usually seen

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

0%0.5%1%1.5%2%Jan 1-7: 0% of 32817 checklistsJan 8-14: 0% of 25111 checklistsJan 15-21: 0% of 25510 checklistsJan 22-31: 0% of 34492 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0% of 24950 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0% of 28224 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0% of 43578 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0% of 26467 checklistsMar 1-7: 0% of 25851 checklistsMar 8-14: 0% of 25901 checklistsMar 15-21: 0% of 26747 checklistsMar 22-31: 0% of 40819 checklistsApr 1-7: 0% of 31351 checklistsApr 8-14: 0% of 33239 checklistsApr 15-21: 0% of 37284 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.1% of 54364 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.4% of 47698 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.9% of 46174 checklistsMay 15-21: 1.3% of 36444 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.4% of 43203 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.1% of 28503 checklistsJun 8-14: 0% of 25485 checklistsJun 15-21: 0% of 23728 checklistsJun 22-30: 0% of 28785 checklistsJul 1-7: 0% of 22294 checklistsJul 8-14: 0% of 20481 checklistsJul 15-21: 0% of 18914 checklistsJul 22-31: 0% of 26976 checklistsAug 1-7: 0% of 19555 checklistsAug 8-14: 0% of 18744 checklistsAug 15-21: 0% of 18721 checklistsAug 22-31: 0% of 28763 checklistsSep 1-7: 0% of 23594 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.1% of 22581 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.6% of 23036 checklistsSep 22-30: 1.2% of 29687 checklistsOct 1-7: 2.0% of 24321 checklistsOct 8-14: 1.2% of 23946 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.4% of 22191 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.1% of 30161 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.1% of 21431 checklistsNov 8-14: 0% of 22758 checklistsNov 15-21: 0% of 19988 checklistsNov 22-30: 0% of 27665 checklistsDec 1-7: 0% of 19324 checklistsDec 8-14: 0% of 20316 checklistsDec 15-21: 0% of 25675 checklistsDec 22-31: 0% of 38677 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 Virginia 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 Virginia

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Manassas Park CountyBest late September · 11 checklists that week, 343 in all20%
  2. Buchanan CountyBest early October · 49 checklists that week, 1,612 in all15%
  3. Bedford CountyBest early October · 200 checklists that week, 13,536 in all7.7%
  4. Alexandria CountyBest mid May · 1130 checklists that week, 22,325 in all7.7%
  5. Nelson CountyBest early October · 195 checklists that week, 7,436 in all7.1%
  6. Craig CountyBest late September · 41 checklists that week, 1,834 in all6.6%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Lake LawsonVirginia Beach County, best mid May · 80 checklists that week, 453 in all27%
  2. Marshview ParkVirginia Beach County, best the second week of October · 31 checklists that week, 224 in all23%
  3. Northfields LakeAlbemarle County, best late September · 20 checklists that week, 468 in all20%
  4. George Washington National ForestAugusta County, best the second week of October · 28 checklists that week, 814 in all19%

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

Best time of day

In Virginia, the Gray-cheeked Thrush is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (0.3% of those checklists).

0%0.5%12 am: too few checklists (485) to judge1 am: too few checklists (488) to judge2 am: too few checklists (423) to judge3 am: too few checklists (565) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1410) to judge5 am: too few checklists (10265) to judge6 am: 0.4% of 64788 checklists7 am: 0.3% of 169128 checklists8 am: 0.3% of 180748 checklists9 am: 0.2% of 153462 checklists10 am: 0.2% of 128966 checklists11 am: 0.2% of 104204 checklists12 pm: 0.1% of 91604 checklists1 pm: 0.1% of 85547 checklists2 pm: 0.1% of 82355 checklists3 pm: 0.1% of 82265 checklists4 pm: 0.1% of 76714 checklists5 pm: 0.1% of 56782 checklists6 pm: 0.1% of 40131 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (24290) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (7744) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2383) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1122) 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
January0%0%0%0%
February0%0%0%0%
March0%0%0%0%
April0%0%0%0.1%
May0.4%0.9%1.3%0.4%
June0.1%0%0%0%
July0%0%0%0%
August0%0%0%0%
September0%0.1%0.6%1.2%
October2.0%1.2%0.4%0.1%
November0.1%0%0%0%
December0%0%0%0%

Neighboring states

  • District of Columbia: arrives early May, 18 weeks earlier than Virginia
  • Maryland: arrives the second week of September, 1 week earlier than Virginia
  • West Virginia: arrives mid September, in the same week than Virginia
  • North Carolina: arrives mid September, in the same week than Virginia

Common questions

When do Gray-cheeked Thrushes arrive in Virginia?
Gray-cheeked Thrushes mostly pass through Virginia: they arrive in mid September, peak in early October (1.5% of checklists), and most are gone by mid October.
When do Gray-cheeked Thrushes leave Virginia?
Most Gray-cheeked Thrushes have left Virginia by mid October, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Gray-cheeked Thrush in Virginia?
The Gray-cheeked Thrush is reported most often in early October, on about 1.5% of Virginia checklists.
Where in Virginia are Gray-cheeked Thrushes seen most often?
By county, Manassas Park County, Buchanan County, and Bedford County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Gray-cheeked Thrush (counties with at least 200 checklists).