WhenToBird

Ardea herodias · Ardeidae

When Do Great Blue Herons Arrive in Tennessee?

Adult Great Blue Heron
Photo: mostbittern, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

The Great Blue Heron is in Tennessee all year. It turns up on about 28% of checklists at its peak (mid November) and on 17% in its quietest week (mid February).

When to look

PresentAll year
Peak weekNov 15-21mid November
Quietest weekFeb 15-21mid February

Best: mid November. Here all year. Peak: on about 28% of Tennessee checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Juncommon
  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%10%20%30%Jan 1-7: 23% of 16696 checklistsJan 8-14: 24% of 13056 checklistsJan 15-21: 21% of 13646 checklistsJan 22-31: 23% of 18071 checklistsFeb 1-7: 22% of 13342 checklistsFeb 8-14: 17% of 14316 checklistsFeb 15-21: 15% of 20395 checklistsFeb 22-28: 21% of 13129 checklistsMar 1-7: 21% of 12701 checklistsMar 8-14: 23% of 12789 checklistsMar 15-21: 24% of 13599 checklistsMar 22-31: 24% of 20293 checklistsApr 1-7: 23% of 15779 checklistsApr 8-14: 23% of 16646 checklistsApr 15-21: 22% of 18625 checklistsApr 22-30: 22% of 26689 checklistsMay 1-7: 23% of 21054 checklistsMay 8-14: 23% of 19954 checklistsMay 15-21: 23% of 14494 checklistsMay 22-31: 22% of 17790 checklistsJun 1-7: 20% of 11344 checklistsJun 8-14: 19% of 11049 checklistsJun 15-21: 20% of 9625 checklistsJun 22-30: 21% of 11522 checklistsJul 1-7: 23% of 9208 checklistsJul 8-14: 22% of 8814 checklistsJul 15-21: 23% of 8887 checklistsJul 22-31: 23% of 12739 checklistsAug 1-7: 23% of 9632 checklistsAug 8-14: 24% of 9514 checklistsAug 15-21: 25% of 9619 checklistsAug 22-31: 26% of 14227 checklistsSep 1-7: 24% of 11988 checklistsSep 8-14: 23% of 11660 checklistsSep 15-21: 22% of 11774 checklistsSep 22-30: 23% of 15658 checklistsOct 1-7: 22% of 12641 checklistsOct 8-14: 22% of 12389 checklistsOct 15-21: 24% of 10249 checklistsOct 22-31: 26% of 14085 checklistsNov 1-7: 28% of 10700 checklistsNov 8-14: 29% of 10709 checklistsNov 15-21: 27% of 9955 checklistsNov 22-30: 28% of 13423 checklistsDec 1-7: 29% of 10106 checklistsDec 8-14: 27% of 10478 checklistsDec 15-21: 25% of 12177 checklistsDec 22-31: 24% of 17397 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 Tennessee 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 Tennessee

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Cocke CountyBest the second week of September · 99 checklists that week, 2,051 in all83%
  2. Humphreys CountyBest mid October · 80 checklists that week, 5,858 in all78%
  3. Benton CountyBest late October · 87 checklists that week, 2,202 in all78%
  4. Rhea CountyBest the second week of December · 61 checklists that week, 2,708 in all67%
  5. Haywood CountyBest early December · 20 checklists that week, 1,498 in all65%
  6. Lake CountyBest mid September · 53 checklists that week, 5,235 in all65%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Clear Lake (historical)Humphreys County, best late March · 21 checklists that week, 849 in all100%
  2. Old Lock Three Access AreaSumner County, best late May · 20 checklists that week, 534 in all100%
  3. Rankin Bottom Wildlife Management AreaCocke County, best early September · 73 checklists that week, 779 in all98%
  4. Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA)Roane County, best late June · 23 checklists that week, 1,062 in all96%
  5. Butcher LakeAnderson County, best late March · 40 checklists that week, 297 in all96%

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

Best time of day

In Tennessee, the Great Blue Heron is most often listed on checklists started between 11 am and 1 pm (25% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%12 am: too few checklists (224) to judge1 am: too few checklists (253) to judge2 am: too few checklists (245) to judge3 am: too few checklists (267) to judge4 am: too few checklists (582) to judge5 am: too few checklists (5688) to judge6 am: 27% of 36828 checklists7 am: 22% of 72816 checklists8 am: 22% of 76910 checklists9 am: 23% of 69071 checklists10 am: 23% of 60943 checklists11 am: 25% of 52311 checklists12 pm: 25% of 46524 checklists1 pm: 24% of 41133 checklists2 pm: 23% of 40305 checklists3 pm: 23% of 41013 checklists4 pm: 22% of 40029 checklists5 pm: 21% of 29775 checklists6 pm: 19% of 20977 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (12529) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (4456) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1056) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (445) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (252) 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
January23%24%21%23%
February22%17%15%21%
March21%23%24%24%
April23%23%22%22%
May23%23%23%22%
June20%19%20%21%
July23%22%23%23%
August23%24%25%26%
September24%23%22%23%
October22%22%24%26%
November28%29%27%28%
December29%27%25%24%

Neighboring states

  • Kentucky: year-round, peaks late August
  • Georgia: year-round, peaks the second week of December
  • Alabama: year-round, peaks mid November
  • Indiana: year-round, peaks mid August

Common questions

When do Great Blue Herons arrive in Tennessee?
The Great Blue Heron is in Tennessee all year. It turns up on about 28% of checklists at its peak (mid November) and on 17% in its quietest week (mid February).
When do Great Blue Herons leave Tennessee?
The Great Blue Heron does not leave Tennessee: it is reported all year, from 17% of checklists in mid February to 28% in mid November.
When is the best time to see a Great Blue Heron in Tennessee?
The Great Blue Heron is reported most often in mid November, on about 28% of Tennessee checklists.
Where in Tennessee are Great Blue Herons seen most often?
By county, Cocke County, Humphreys County, and Benton County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Great Blue Heron (counties with at least 200 checklists).