WhenToBird

Bubo virginianus · Strigidae

When Do Great Horned Owls Arrive in Alabama?

Adult Great Horned Owl
Photo: Michael Warner, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Great Horned Owls are winter birds in Alabama: they arrive in late July, peak in early October (1.9% of checklists), and most are gone by mid May.

When to look

First arrivalsJul 22-31late July
Common byJul 22-31late July
PeakOct 1-7early October
Most gone byMay 15-21mid May

Best: early October. First arrivals late July; most are gone by mid May. Peak: on about 1.9% of Alabama checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maycommon
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Juluncommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%0.5%1%1.5%2%Jan 1-7: 1.4% of 8642 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.9% of 6607 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.8% of 6680 checklistsJan 22-31: 1.0% of 9008 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.8% of 6642 checklistsFeb 8-14: 1.0% of 7568 checklistsFeb 15-21: 1.0% of 9929 checklistsFeb 22-28: 1.3% of 6490 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.9% of 6458 checklistsMar 8-14: 1.1% of 6570 checklistsMar 15-21: 1.2% of 6773 checklistsMar 22-31: 1.1% of 10830 checklistsApr 1-7: 1.4% of 8995 checklistsApr 8-14: 1.1% of 10390 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.9% of 12700 checklistsApr 22-30: 1.1% of 14225 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.9% of 9140 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.9% of 8111 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.5% of 6353 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.6% of 8318 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.5% of 5231 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.8% of 4757 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.6% of 4646 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.5% of 5740 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.5% of 4694 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.4% of 4178 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.4% of 4109 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.5% of 6000 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.8% of 4666 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.9% of 4468 checklistsAug 15-21: 1.2% of 4474 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.9% of 6494 checklistsSep 1-7: 1.0% of 5434 checklistsSep 8-14: 1.5% of 5216 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.6% of 5162 checklistsSep 22-30: 1.9% of 7474 checklistsOct 1-7: 1.9% of 6916 checklistsOct 8-14: 1.9% of 7332 checklistsOct 15-21: 1.9% of 6038 checklistsOct 22-31: 1.7% of 7071 checklistsNov 1-7: 1.9% of 5207 checklistsNov 8-14: 1.5% of 4883 checklistsNov 15-21: 1.2% of 5122 checklistsNov 22-30: 1.2% of 7130 checklistsDec 1-7: 1.4% of 4897 checklistsDec 8-14: 1.1% of 4738 checklistsDec 15-21: 1.5% of 5321 checklistsDec 22-31: 1.5% of 9158 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 Alabama 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 Alabama

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Bullock CountyBest late October · 45 checklists that week, 1,737 in all17%
  2. Geneva CountyBest the second week of December · 56 checklists that week, 3,203 in all14%
  3. Greene CountyBest late January · 13 checklists that week, 847 in all12%
  4. Conecuh CountyBest the second week of September · 13 checklists that week, 780 in all11%
  5. Lowndes CountyBest early October · 15 checklists that week, 1,094 in all9.1%
  6. Pike CountyBest mid August · 12 checklists that week, 503 in all8.1%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Buckeye PondMadison County, best the second week of October · 39 checklists that week, 892 in all31%
  2. Gator LakeBaldwin County, best late March · 28 checklists that week, 608 in all23%
  3. Wehle Nature PreserveBullock County, best late October · 44 checklists that week, 1,327 in all18%
  4. Dauphin Island Audubon Bird SanctuaryMobile County, best the second week of February · 37 checklists that week, 2,692 in all18%

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

Best time of day

In Alabama, the Great Horned Owl is most often listed on checklists started between 5 and 7 pm (1.7% of those checklists).

0%1%2%3%12 am: too few checklists (109) to judge1 am: too few checklists (111) to judge2 am: too few checklists (112) to judge3 am: too few checklists (143) to judge4 am: too few checklists (303) to judge5 am: too few checklists (4125) to judge6 am: 2.2% of 26677 checklists7 am: 0.6% of 42599 checklists8 am: 0.6% of 39919 checklists9 am: 0.6% of 34699 checklists10 am: 0.4% of 28551 checklists11 am: 0.4% of 23505 checklists12 pm: 0.5% of 20345 checklists1 pm: 0.7% of 18964 checklists2 pm: 0.8% of 20110 checklists3 pm: 1.2% of 20685 checklists4 pm: 1.6% of 19041 checklists5 pm: 1.6% of 13807 checklists6 pm: 1.9% of 8507 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (3367) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (637) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (295) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (233) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (141) 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
January1.4%0.9%0.8%1.0%
February0.8%1.0%1.0%1.3%
March0.9%1.1%1.2%1.1%
April1.4%1.1%0.9%1.1%
May0.9%0.9%0.5%0.6%
June0.5%0.8%0.6%0.5%
July0.5%0.4%0.4%0.5%
August0.8%0.9%1.2%0.9%
September1.0%1.5%1.6%1.9%
October1.9%1.9%1.9%1.7%
November1.9%1.5%1.2%1.2%
December1.4%1.1%1.5%1.5%

Neighboring states

  • Mississippi: arrives mid August, 3 weeks later than Alabama
  • Georgia: arrives the second week of July, 2 weeks earlier than Alabama
  • Tennessee: arrives mid July, 1 week earlier than Alabama
  • Louisiana: arrives early July, 3 weeks earlier than Alabama

Common questions

When do Great Horned Owls arrive in Alabama?
Great Horned Owls are winter birds in Alabama: they arrive in late July, peak in early October (1.9% of checklists), and most are gone by mid May.
When do Great Horned Owls leave Alabama?
Most Great Horned Owls have left Alabama by mid May, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Great Horned Owl in Alabama?
The Great Horned Owl is reported most often in early October, on about 1.9% of Alabama checklists.
Where in Alabama are Great Horned Owls seen most often?
By county, Bullock County, Geneva County, and Greene County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Great Horned Owl (counties with at least 200 checklists).