WhenToBird

Ardea alba · Ardeidae

When Do Great Egrets Arrive in Oregon?

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

Great Egrets are in Oregon all year, but most are here in fall: numbers build from the second week of August, peak in the second week of September (14% of checklists), and fall back by early December. In the quietest week (mid June) they are still on about 4.0% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildAug 8-14the second week of August
PeakSep 8-14the second week of September
Fall back byDec 1-7early December
FewestJun 15-21mid June

Best: the second week of September. Here all year; numbers build from the second week of August and fall back by early December. Peak: on about 14% of Oregon checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Maycommon
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Deccommon

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

0%5%10%15%Jan 1-7: 7.4% of 34973 checklistsJan 8-14: 7.1% of 26807 checklistsJan 15-21: 6.8% of 26567 checklistsJan 22-31: 6.8% of 36019 checklistsFeb 1-7: 6.8% of 24020 checklistsFeb 8-14: 5.9% of 25765 checklistsFeb 15-21: 5.3% of 31019 checklistsFeb 22-28: 5.7% of 24582 checklistsMar 1-7: 5.9% of 24834 checklistsMar 8-14: 5.6% of 24642 checklistsMar 15-21: 5.7% of 27420 checklistsMar 22-31: 5.2% of 39913 checklistsApr 1-7: 5.2% of 28817 checklistsApr 8-14: 5.2% of 31221 checklistsApr 15-21: 5.3% of 34402 checklistsApr 22-30: 5.1% of 47144 checklistsMay 1-7: 5.7% of 37716 checklistsMay 8-14: 5.5% of 39651 checklistsMay 15-21: 5.3% of 37496 checklistsMay 22-31: 5.0% of 56967 checklistsJun 1-7: 4.1% of 35893 checklistsJun 8-14: 4.0% of 31880 checklistsJun 15-21: 4.1% of 30942 checklistsJun 22-30: 4.1% of 38478 checklistsJul 1-7: 4.6% of 27409 checklistsJul 8-14: 5.4% of 25161 checklistsJul 15-21: 6.5% of 25473 checklistsJul 22-31: 7.5% of 33920 checklistsAug 1-7: 8.8% of 24310 checklistsAug 8-14: 11% of 23675 checklistsAug 15-21: 12% of 23623 checklistsAug 22-31: 13% of 33762 checklistsSep 1-7: 14% of 25120 checklistsSep 8-14: 13% of 24458 checklistsSep 15-21: 14% of 25528 checklistsSep 22-30: 14% of 31631 checklistsOct 1-7: 11% of 25498 checklistsOct 8-14: 11% of 25161 checklistsOct 15-21: 12% of 23701 checklistsOct 22-31: 11% of 30996 checklistsNov 1-7: 11% of 21089 checklistsNov 8-14: 11% of 21880 checklistsNov 15-21: 10% of 21501 checklistsNov 22-30: 9.7% of 28930 checklistsDec 1-7: 9.3% of 19807 checklistsDec 8-14: 8.0% of 21022 checklistsDec 15-21: 7.4% of 24817 checklistsDec 22-31: 7.1% of 37592 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 Oregon 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 Oregon

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Columbia CountyBest the second week of September · 517 checklists that week, 27,750 in all41%
  2. Washington CountyBest early September · 1836 checklists that week, 110,376 in all35%
  3. Klamath CountyBest mid September · 483 checklists that week, 26,875 in all31%
  4. Tillamook CountyBest late September · 1152 checklists that week, 45,809 in all25%
  5. Coos CountyBest early September · 698 checklists that week, 24,368 in all23%
  6. Marion CountyBest late October · 1101 checklists that week, 52,870 in all23%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Bybee LakeMultnomah County, best late July · 104 checklists that week, 1,688 in all98%
  2. Wapato Lake National Wildlife Refuge (Wapato Lake Bed)Yamhill County, best late September · 22 checklists that week, 176 in all97%
  3. Smith LakeMultnomah County, best early August · 86 checklists that week, 3,604 in all97%
  4. Klamath FallsKlamath County, best the second week of May · 34 checklists that week, 720 in all97%
  5. William L. Finley National Wildlife RefugeBenton County, best mid September · 66 checklists that week, 1,760 in all96%
  6. Fernhill WetlandsWashington County, best mid October · 150 checklists that week, 6,516 in all95%

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

Best time of day

In Oregon, the Great Egret is most often listed on checklists started between 10 am and 12 pm (8.8% of those checklists).

0%5%10%12 am: too few checklists (1505) to judge1 am: too few checklists (675) to judge2 am: too few checklists (626) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1641) to judge4 am: too few checklists (3696) to judge5 am: too few checklists (14524) to judge6 am: 6.0% of 50677 checklists7 am: 6.8% of 125347 checklists8 am: 8.0% of 163668 checklists9 am: 8.7% of 160351 checklists10 am: 8.8% of 148940 checklists11 am: 8.7% of 124743 checklists12 pm: 8.1% of 112537 checklists1 pm: 8.1% of 98999 checklists2 pm: 8.1% of 94690 checklists3 pm: 7.8% of 87923 checklists4 pm: 6.5% of 75235 checklists5 pm: 6.0% of 54504 checklists6 pm: 5.3% of 40469 checklists7 pm: 3.2% of 33675 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (18715) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (5839) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (2704) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (1549) 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
January7.4%7.1%6.8%6.8%
February6.8%5.9%5.3%5.7%
March5.9%5.6%5.7%5.2%
April5.2%5.2%5.3%5.1%
May5.7%5.5%5.3%5.0%
June4.1%4.0%4.1%4.1%
July4.6%5.4%6.5%7.5%
August8.8%11%12%13%
September14%13%14%14%
October11%11%12%11%
November11%11%10%9.7%
December9.3%8.0%7.4%7.1%

Neighboring states

  • Washington: arrives the second week of April, 16 weeks earlier than Oregon
  • Idaho: arrives late March, 18 weeks earlier than Oregon
  • Nevada: arrives the second week of August, in the same week than Oregon
  • California: year-round, peaks late November

Common questions

When do Great Egrets arrive in Oregon?
Great Egrets are in Oregon all year, but most are here in fall: numbers build from the second week of August, peak in the second week of September (14% of checklists), and fall back by early December. In the quietest week (mid June) they are still on about 4.0% of checklists.
When do Great Egrets leave Oregon?
Great Egrets never fully leave Oregon: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by early December, but some are still reported in every week, about 4.0% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Great Egret in Oregon?
The Great Egret is reported most often in the second week of September, on about 14% of Oregon checklists.
Where in Oregon are Great Egrets seen most often?
By county, Columbia County, Washington County, and Klamath County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Great Egret (counties with at least 200 checklists).