WhenToBird

Myiarchus crinitus · Tyrannidae

When Do Great Crested Flycatchers Arrive in Illinois?

Adult Great Crested Flycatcher
Photo: Jake McCumber, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Great Crested Flycatchers reach Illinois in mid April, are common by late April, peak in late May (25% of checklists), and most are gone by late August.

When to look

First arrivalsApr 15-21mid April
Common byApr 22-30late April
PeakMay 22-31late May
Most gone byAug 22-31late August

Best: late May. First arrivals mid April; most are gone by late August. Peak: on about 25% of Illinois checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marnot usually seen
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julcommon
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octnot usually seen
  11. Novnot usually seen
  12. Decnot usually seen

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

0%10%20%30%Jan 1-7: 0% of 29700 checklistsJan 8-14: 0% of 20189 checklistsJan 15-21: 0% of 19784 checklistsJan 22-31: 0% of 26641 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0% of 20478 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0% of 21967 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0% of 28735 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0% of 24223 checklistsMar 1-7: 0% of 26775 checklistsMar 8-14: 0% of 27579 checklistsMar 15-21: 0% of 27193 checklistsMar 22-31: 0% of 42278 checklistsApr 1-7: 0% of 34579 checklistsApr 8-14: 0% of 38290 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.4% of 39261 checklistsApr 22-30: 4.7% of 59584 checklistsMay 1-7: 14% of 60485 checklistsMay 8-14: 20% of 59647 checklistsMay 15-21: 26% of 43173 checklistsMay 22-31: 27% of 47913 checklistsJun 1-7: 22% of 31151 checklistsJun 8-14: 19% of 27692 checklistsJun 15-21: 17% of 23983 checklistsJun 22-30: 14% of 28448 checklistsJul 1-7: 14% of 21273 checklistsJul 8-14: 11% of 19284 checklistsJul 15-21: 11% of 17712 checklistsJul 22-31: 9.4% of 24500 checklistsAug 1-7: 7.6% of 18498 checklistsAug 8-14: 6.5% of 19331 checklistsAug 15-21: 6.5% of 19983 checklistsAug 22-31: 7.4% of 31892 checklistsSep 1-7: 6.1% of 26396 checklistsSep 8-14: 3.9% of 25011 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.4% of 23597 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.2% of 30638 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.1% of 23949 checklistsOct 8-14: 0% of 24412 checklistsOct 15-21: 0% of 22359 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.1% of 29794 checklistsNov 1-7: 0% of 21877 checklistsNov 8-14: 0% of 19742 checklistsNov 15-21: 0% of 18989 checklistsNov 22-30: 0% of 23905 checklistsDec 1-7: 0% of 16935 checklistsDec 8-14: 0% of 16687 checklistsDec 15-21: 0% of 20931 checklistsDec 22-31: 0% of 29011 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 Illinois 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 Illinois

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Schuyler CountyBest late May · 14 checklists that week, 617 in all64%
  2. Monroe CountyBest the second week of May · 90 checklists that week, 2,547 in all59%
  3. Mercer CountyBest late May · 24 checklists that week, 949 in all56%
  4. Calhoun CountyBest mid June · 29 checklists that week, 786 in all55%
  5. Fayette CountyBest late May · 45 checklists that week, 1,050 in all55%
  6. Pope CountyBest the second week of May · 41 checklists that week, 1,310 in all53%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Waterfall Glen (northwest)DuPage County, best late May · 21 checklists that week, 402 in all91%
  2. Deer Lake (Lincolnshire)Will County, best mid May · 25 checklists that week, 474 in all89%
  3. Salt Creek Woods Nature PreserveCook County, best early June · 23 checklists that week, 955 in all89%
  4. Fox Ridge State ParkColes County, best late May · 39 checklists that week, 1,010 in all88%
  5. Sugar River (Otter Creek)Winnebago County, best late May · 20 checklists that week, 213 in all85%
  6. Steward ParkKendall County, best late May · 29 checklists that week, 788 in all85%

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

Best time of day

In Illinois, the Great Crested Flycatcher is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (10% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%12 am: too few checklists (484) to judge1 am: too few checklists (631) to judge2 am: too few checklists (485) to judge3 am: too few checklists (610) to judge4 am: too few checklists (2321) to judge5 am: too few checklists (23536) to judge6 am: 13% of 95511 checklists7 am: 9.1% of 164584 checklists8 am: 7.2% of 163654 checklists9 am: 6.2% of 141804 checklists10 am: 5.3% of 122882 checklists11 am: 4.4% of 100640 checklists12 pm: 3.9% of 89894 checklists1 pm: 3.8% of 82729 checklists2 pm: 3.6% of 79801 checklists3 pm: 3.5% of 82169 checklists4 pm: 3.8% of 75124 checklists5 pm: 5.1% of 57708 checklists6 pm: 5.7% of 41843 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (20943) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (6131) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1677) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (843) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (448) 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%0.4%4.7%
May14%20%26%27%
June22%19%17%14%
July14%11%11%9.4%
August7.6%6.5%6.5%7.4%
September6.1%3.9%1.4%0.2%
October0.1%0%0%0.1%
November0%0%0%0%
December0%0%0%0%

Neighboring states

  • Indiana: arrives mid April, in the same week than Illinois
  • Wisconsin: arrives late April, 1 week later than Illinois
  • Michigan: arrives late April, 1 week later than Illinois
  • Iowa: arrives late April, 1 week later than Illinois

Common questions

When do Great Crested Flycatchers arrive in Illinois?
Great Crested Flycatchers reach Illinois in mid April, are common by late April, peak in late May (25% of checklists), and most are gone by late August.
When do Great Crested Flycatchers leave Illinois?
Most Great Crested Flycatchers have left Illinois by late August, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until mid September.
When is the best time to see a Great Crested Flycatcher in Illinois?
The Great Crested Flycatcher is reported most often in late May, on about 25% of Illinois checklists.
Where in Illinois are Great Crested Flycatchers seen most often?
By county, Schuyler County, Monroe County, and Mercer County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Great Crested Flycatcher (counties with at least 200 checklists).