WhenToBird

Myiarchus crinitus · Tyrannidae

When Do Great Crested Flycatchers Arrive in Indiana?

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

Great Crested Flycatchers reach Indiana in mid April, are common by late April, peak in late May (27% of checklists), and most are gone by late July.

When to look

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

Best: late May. First arrivals mid April; most are gone by late July. Peak: on about 27% of Indiana 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 18123 checklistsJan 8-14: 0% of 12006 checklistsJan 15-21: 0% of 12403 checklistsJan 22-31: 0% of 16181 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0% of 12546 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0% of 14250 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0% of 18077 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0% of 13590 checklistsMar 1-7: 0% of 14545 checklistsMar 8-14: 0% of 14594 checklistsMar 15-21: 0% of 13894 checklistsMar 22-31: 0% of 22400 checklistsApr 1-7: 0% of 18069 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.1% of 19579 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.8% of 19518 checklistsApr 22-30: 7.3% of 30544 checklistsMay 1-7: 18% of 28430 checklistsMay 8-14: 24% of 30624 checklistsMay 15-21: 30% of 22920 checklistsMay 22-31: 28% of 21234 checklistsJun 1-7: 21% of 12279 checklistsJun 8-14: 18% of 10904 checklistsJun 15-21: 16% of 9488 checklistsJun 22-30: 14% of 11362 checklistsJul 1-7: 12% of 9947 checklistsJul 8-14: 11% of 9585 checklistsJul 15-21: 10% of 8929 checklistsJul 22-31: 8.4% of 12639 checklistsAug 1-7: 6.7% of 9528 checklistsAug 8-14: 5.6% of 9451 checklistsAug 15-21: 5.7% of 9442 checklistsAug 22-31: 6.0% of 14969 checklistsSep 1-7: 6.4% of 12628 checklistsSep 8-14: 3.9% of 11793 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.8% of 11396 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.4% of 14203 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.1% of 11365 checklistsOct 8-14: 0% of 12092 checklistsOct 15-21: 0% of 10440 checklistsOct 22-31: 0% of 13883 checklistsNov 1-7: 0% of 10476 checklistsNov 8-14: 0% of 9776 checklistsNov 15-21: 0% of 9035 checklistsNov 22-30: 0% of 12547 checklistsDec 1-7: 0% of 9078 checklistsDec 8-14: 0% of 8732 checklistsDec 15-21: 0% of 11024 checklistsDec 22-31: 0% of 15432 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 Indiana 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 Indiana

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Parke CountyBest mid May · 35 checklists that week, 1,527 in all55%
  2. Fountain CountyBest late May · 27 checklists that week, 397 in all54%
  3. Kosciusko CountyBest late May · 344 checklists that week, 8,359 in all53%
  4. Posey CountyBest mid May · 45 checklists that week, 2,179 in all53%
  5. Warren CountyBest mid May · 10 checklists that week, 458 in all49%
  6. Randolph CountyBest late May · 18 checklists that week, 272 in all48%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Ball Wetlands Nature PreserveKosciusko County, best late May · 27 checklists that week, 127 in all90%
  2. Scales Lake State BeachWarrick County, best mid May · 21 checklists that week, 645 in all89%
  3. Atterbury Fish and Wildlife Area (southeast)Johnson County, best the second week of May · 20 checklists that week, 173 in all82%
  4. Fort Benjamin Harrison State ParkMarion County, best late May · 115 checklists that week, 1,724 in all82%

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

Best time of day

In Indiana, the Great Crested Flycatcher is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (13% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%20%12 am: too few checklists (240) to judge1 am: too few checklists (231) to judge2 am: too few checklists (222) to judge3 am: too few checklists (202) to judge4 am: too few checklists (674) to judge5 am: too few checklists (4329) to judge6 am: 19% of 20589 checklists7 am: 11% of 58470 checklists8 am: 7.9% of 86931 checklists9 am: 6.9% of 78239 checklists10 am: 5.3% of 66080 checklists11 am: 4.4% of 54904 checklists12 pm: 3.9% of 47610 checklists1 pm: 3.8% of 44814 checklists2 pm: 3.9% of 43790 checklists3 pm: 3.8% of 42983 checklists4 pm: 4.1% of 45349 checklists5 pm: 4.2% of 35993 checklists6 pm: 5.8% of 26447 checklists7 pm: 6.0% of 17740 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (7603) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1721) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (517) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (272) 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%0.1%0.8%7.3%
May18%24%30%28%
June21%18%16%14%
July12%11%10%8.4%
August6.7%5.6%5.7%6.0%
September6.4%3.9%1.8%0.4%
October0.1%0%0%0%
November0%0%0%0%
December0%0%0%0%

Neighboring states

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

Common questions

When do Great Crested Flycatchers arrive in Indiana?
Great Crested Flycatchers reach Indiana in mid April, are common by late April, peak in late May (27% of checklists), and most are gone by late July.
When do Great Crested Flycatchers leave Indiana?
Most Great Crested Flycatchers have left Indiana by late July, 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 Indiana?
The Great Crested Flycatcher is reported most often in late May, on about 27% of Indiana checklists.
Where in Indiana are Great Crested Flycatchers seen most often?
By county, Parke County, Fountain County, and Kosciusko County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Great Crested Flycatcher (counties with at least 200 checklists).