WhenToBird

Bubo virginianus · Strigidae

When Do Great Horned Owls Arrive in Arkansas?

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

Great Horned Owls arrive in Arkansas in late January, peak in mid August (1.9% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of January.

When to look

First arrivalsJan 22-31late January
Common byJan 22-31late January
PeakAug 15-21mid August
Most gone byJan 8-14the second week of January

Best: mid August. First arrivals late January; most are gone by the second week of January. Peak: on about 1.9% of Arkansas checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maycommon
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novcommon
  12. Deccommon

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

0%1%2%3%Jan 1-7: 0.8% of 5292 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.6% of 4085 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.6% of 4531 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.4% of 6500 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.9% of 4752 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.9% of 5385 checklistsFeb 15-21: 1.2% of 7219 checklistsFeb 22-28: 1.4% of 4163 checklistsMar 1-7: 1.6% of 3952 checklistsMar 8-14: 1.7% of 4067 checklistsMar 15-21: 1.9% of 4446 checklistsMar 22-31: 1.8% of 6911 checklistsApr 1-7: 1.6% of 5422 checklistsApr 8-14: 1.4% of 6043 checklistsApr 15-21: 1.4% of 6759 checklistsApr 22-30: 1.1% of 10236 checklistsMay 1-7: 1.4% of 8243 checklistsMay 8-14: 1.2% of 7467 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.8% of 6160 checklistsMay 22-31: 1.2% of 7287 checklistsJun 1-7: 1.0% of 4884 checklistsJun 8-14: 1.0% of 4444 checklistsJun 15-21: 1.3% of 3579 checklistsJun 22-30: 1.6% of 3858 checklistsJul 1-7: 1.5% of 3042 checklistsJul 8-14: 2.1% of 2889 checklistsJul 15-21: 1.7% of 2599 checklistsJul 22-31: 1.8% of 3825 checklistsAug 1-7: 1.9% of 2951 checklistsAug 8-14: 1.6% of 2765 checklistsAug 15-21: 2.1% of 2838 checklistsAug 22-31: 1.9% of 4360 checklistsSep 1-7: 1.7% of 3573 checklistsSep 8-14: 1.4% of 3314 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.8% of 3118 checklistsSep 22-30: 1.8% of 4381 checklistsOct 1-7: 1.1% of 3640 checklistsOct 8-14: 1.7% of 4119 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.9% of 3810 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.8% of 4956 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.9% of 3704 checklistsNov 8-14: 1.0% of 3678 checklistsNov 15-21: 1.2% of 3457 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.6% of 4648 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.7% of 3390 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.8% of 3510 checklistsDec 15-21: 1.0% of 4540 checklistsDec 22-31: 1.1% of 6404 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 Arkansas 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 Arkansas

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Jefferson CountyBest early July · 157 checklists that week, 11,132 in all23%
  2. Baxter CountyBest mid September · 125 checklists that week, 5,558 in all14%
  3. Desha CountyBest early November · 11 checklists that week, 756 in all14%
  4. Woodruff CountyBest the second week of February · 21 checklists that week, 377 in all11%
  5. Union CountyBest early January · 10 checklists that week, 592 in all11%
  6. Van Buren CountyBest mid November · 17 checklists that week, 895 in all10%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Lake Pine BluffJefferson County, best the second week of May · 27 checklists that week, 2,347 in all7.6%
  2. Craighead Forest ParkCraighead County, best late February · 21 checklists that week, 818 in all7.5%
  3. Birch PondWhite County, best late August · 23 checklists that week, 236 in all7.4%
  4. Lake Sequoyah ParkWashington County, best early October · 26 checklists that week, 1,719 in all6.2%
  5. Wapanocca LakeCrittenden County, best late December · 23 checklists that week, 302 in all6.1%

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

Best time of day

In Arkansas, the Great Horned Owl is most often listed on checklists started between 5 and 7 pm (2.1% of those checklists).

0%1%2%3%4%12 am: too few checklists (98) to judge1 am: too few checklists (88) to judge2 am: too few checklists (95) to judge3 am: too few checklists (94) to judge4 am: too few checklists (145) to judge5 am: too few checklists (1455) to judge6 am: 3.2% of 10807 checklists7 am: 0.8% of 27761 checklists8 am: 0.5% of 30943 checklists9 am: 0.5% of 26975 checklists10 am: 1.6% of 21989 checklists11 am: 1.1% of 16828 checklists12 pm: 1.0% of 14069 checklists1 pm: 0.8% of 13145 checklists2 pm: 0.6% of 12780 checklists3 pm: 0.8% of 12723 checklists4 pm: 1.5% of 12500 checklists5 pm: 2.1% of 9576 checklists6 pm: 2.1% of 7182 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (4187) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (1314) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (245) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (122) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (75) 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
January0.8%0.6%0.6%0.4%
February0.9%0.9%1.2%1.4%
March1.6%1.7%1.9%1.8%
April1.6%1.4%1.4%1.1%
May1.4%1.2%0.8%1.2%
June1.0%1.0%1.3%1.6%
July1.5%2.1%1.7%1.8%
August1.9%1.6%2.1%1.9%
September1.7%1.4%1.8%1.8%
October1.1%1.7%0.9%0.8%
November0.9%1.0%1.2%0.6%
December0.7%0.8%1.0%1.1%

Neighboring states

  • Missouri: arrives the second week of August, 22 weeks earlier than Arkansas
  • Oklahoma: arrives early August, 23 weeks earlier than Arkansas
  • Kansas: year-round, peaks mid September
  • Mississippi: arrives mid August, 21 weeks earlier than Arkansas

Common questions

When do Great Horned Owls arrive in Arkansas?
Great Horned Owls arrive in Arkansas in late January, peak in mid August (1.9% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of January.
When do Great Horned Owls leave Arkansas?
Most Great Horned Owls have left Arkansas by the second week of January, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Great Horned Owl in Arkansas?
The Great Horned Owl is reported most often in mid August, on about 1.9% of Arkansas checklists.
Where in Arkansas are Great Horned Owls seen most often?
By county, Jefferson County, Baxter County, and Desha County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Great Horned Owl (counties with at least 200 checklists).