WhenToBird

Ardea alba · Ardeidae

When Do Great Egrets Arrive in North Carolina?

Adult Great Egret
Photo: Marcelo Maux, CC BY-SA 4.0 via iNaturalist

Great Egrets are in North Carolina all year, but most are here in fall: numbers build from mid July, peak in mid August (17% of checklists), and fall back by mid October. In the quietest week (mid February) they are still on about 3.2% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildJul 15-21mid July
PeakAug 15-21mid August
Fall back byOct 15-21mid October
FewestFeb 15-21mid February

Best: mid August. Here all year; numbers build from mid July and fall back by mid October. Peak: on about 17% of North Carolina checklists.

  1. Januncommon
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Maruncommon
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novcommon
  12. Decuncommon

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

0%5%10%15%20%Jan 1-7: 5.1% of 30085 checklistsJan 8-14: 5.1% of 22728 checklistsJan 15-21: 5.4% of 24292 checklistsJan 22-31: 4.4% of 34122 checklistsFeb 1-7: 4.2% of 26352 checklistsFeb 8-14: 3.3% of 29663 checklistsFeb 15-21: 2.8% of 41515 checklistsFeb 22-28: 3.9% of 24318 checklistsMar 1-7: 4.2% of 23408 checklistsMar 8-14: 4.6% of 22658 checklistsMar 15-21: 4.2% of 22784 checklistsMar 22-31: 5.1% of 36034 checklistsApr 1-7: 5.0% of 28131 checklistsApr 8-14: 4.6% of 29190 checklistsApr 15-21: 4.7% of 32847 checklistsApr 22-30: 4.0% of 47966 checklistsMay 1-7: 3.7% of 37076 checklistsMay 8-14: 4.2% of 36228 checklistsMay 15-21: 5.2% of 30378 checklistsMay 22-31: 6.9% of 40237 checklistsJun 1-7: 6.6% of 27551 checklistsJun 8-14: 6.4% of 26473 checklistsJun 15-21: 6.7% of 22789 checklistsJun 22-30: 7.8% of 27615 checklistsJul 1-7: 8.6% of 20022 checklistsJul 8-14: 10% of 19315 checklistsJul 15-21: 11% of 18934 checklistsJul 22-31: 13% of 25600 checklistsAug 1-7: 15% of 17987 checklistsAug 8-14: 17% of 17307 checklistsAug 15-21: 17% of 17080 checklistsAug 22-31: 16% of 25844 checklistsSep 1-7: 15% of 20818 checklistsSep 8-14: 14% of 20070 checklistsSep 15-21: 13% of 21984 checklistsSep 22-30: 12% of 26979 checklistsOct 1-7: 13% of 22605 checklistsOct 8-14: 12% of 22677 checklistsOct 15-21: 12% of 21407 checklistsOct 22-31: 9.8% of 25927 checklistsNov 1-7: 6.8% of 18830 checklistsNov 8-14: 6.2% of 18418 checklistsNov 15-21: 5.5% of 19101 checklistsNov 22-30: 5.9% of 25709 checklistsDec 1-7: 5.0% of 18856 checklistsDec 8-14: 4.7% of 18745 checklistsDec 15-21: 4.2% of 22478 checklistsDec 22-31: 6.1% 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. Wilson CountyBest mid September · 102 checklists that week, 5,078 in all64%
  2. Montgomery CountyBest the second week of September · 14 checklists that week, 1,895 in all56%
  3. Onslow CountyBest late September · 214 checklists that week, 8,231 in all47%
  4. Hyde CountyBest mid August · 68 checklists that week, 8,350 in all43%
  5. Brunswick CountyBest mid September · 563 checklists that week, 29,668 in all42%
  6. New Hanover CountyBest mid October · 708 checklists that week, 33,362 in all42%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. B. Everett Jordan Lake (Little Creek)Chatham County, best early September · 38 checklists that week, 717 in all99%
  2. Lake Brandt - Owls RoostGuilford County, best the second week of September · 33 checklists that week, 1,261 in all99%
  3. Newcombs LakeDurham County, best late July · 24 checklists that week, 731 in all99%
  4. City of Greensboro Open SpaceGuilford County, best early September · 50 checklists that week, 732 in all98%
  5. City of Wilson - Buckhorn ReservoirWilson County, best the second week of October · 24 checklists that week, 297 in all98%

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

Best time of day

In North Carolina, the Great Egret is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (9.3% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%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: 11% of 50335 checklists7 am: 8.6% of 150152 checklists8 am: 7.4% of 182902 checklists9 am: 7.0% of 158933 checklists10 am: 6.9% of 128398 checklists11 am: 6.7% of 98671 checklists12 pm: 6.6% of 78640 checklists1 pm: 6.7% of 72510 checklists2 pm: 6.6% of 69179 checklists3 pm: 6.3% of 67669 checklists4 pm: 6.3% of 63964 checklists5 pm: 6.8% of 48520 checklists6 pm: 8.0% 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
January5.1%5.1%5.4%4.4%
February4.2%3.3%2.8%3.9%
March4.2%4.6%4.2%5.1%
April5.0%4.6%4.7%4.0%
May3.7%4.2%5.2%6.9%
June6.6%6.4%6.7%7.8%
July8.6%10%11%13%
August15%17%17%16%
September15%14%13%12%
October13%12%12%9.8%
November6.8%6.2%5.5%5.9%
December5.0%4.7%4.2%6.1%

Neighboring states

  • South Carolina: year-round, peaks the second week of August
  • Virginia: arrives the second week of July, 1 week earlier than North Carolina
  • West Virginia: arrives the second week of July, 1 week earlier than North Carolina
  • District of Columbia: arrives mid May, 8 weeks earlier than North Carolina

Common questions

When do Great Egrets arrive in North Carolina?
Great Egrets are in North Carolina all year, but most are here in fall: numbers build from mid July, peak in mid August (17% of checklists), and fall back by mid October. In the quietest week (mid February) they are still on about 3.2% of checklists.
When do Great Egrets leave North Carolina?
Great Egrets never fully leave North Carolina: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by mid October, but some are still reported in every week, about 3.2% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Great Egret in North Carolina?
The Great Egret is reported most often in mid August, on about 17% of North Carolina checklists.
Where in North Carolina are Great Egrets seen most often?
By county, Wilson County, Montgomery County, and Onslow County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Great Egret (counties with at least 200 checklists).