WhenToBird

Bubo virginianus · Strigidae

When Do Great Horned Owls Arrive in Georgia?

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

Great Horned Owls are winter birds in Georgia: they arrive in the second week of July, peak in early October (1.3% of checklists), and most are gone by mid May.

When to look

First arrivalsJul 8-14the second week of July
Common byJul 8-14the second week of July
PeakOct 1-7early October
Most gone byMay 15-21mid May

Best: early October. First arrivals the second week of July; most are gone by mid May. Peak: on about 1.3% of Georgia checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  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: 1.0% of 22238 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.8% of 16390 checklistsJan 15-21: 1.0% of 16779 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.9% of 22964 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.8% of 16870 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.7% of 19486 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.6% of 28540 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.7% of 17005 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.9% of 15920 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.7% of 16274 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.7% of 16432 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.7% of 25318 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.7% of 19292 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.7% of 19742 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.6% of 21498 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.7% of 29736 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.5% of 20858 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.5% of 20346 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.3% of 15859 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.4% of 19867 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.3% of 13467 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.4% of 12812 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.4% of 11379 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.3% of 14121 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.4% of 11176 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.4% of 10695 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.3% of 10655 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.5% of 15106 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.4% of 10650 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.5% of 10247 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.7% of 10371 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.7% of 15203 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.9% of 13007 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.9% of 12541 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.1% of 12943 checklistsSep 22-30: 1.5% of 17655 checklistsOct 1-7: 1.2% of 14646 checklistsOct 8-14: 1.3% of 15836 checklistsOct 15-21: 1.3% of 13124 checklistsOct 22-31: 1.3% of 15859 checklistsNov 1-7: 1.0% of 11711 checklistsNov 8-14: 1.0% of 11587 checklistsNov 15-21: 1.1% of 12025 checklistsNov 22-30: 1.2% of 16431 checklistsDec 1-7: 1.1% of 11256 checklistsDec 8-14: 1.1% of 11967 checklistsDec 15-21: 1.6% of 15618 checklistsDec 22-31: 1.2% of 22453 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 Georgia 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.

Embed this map on your site

Where in Georgia

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Washington CountyBest late November · 12 checklists that week, 523 in all19%
  2. Jeff Davis CountyBest late October · 13 checklists that week, 627 in all16%
  3. Baker CountyBest mid October · 10 checklists that week, 533 in all16%
  4. Seminole CountyBest late November · 119 checklists that week, 605 in all15%
  5. Sumter CountyBest late November · 64 checklists that week, 3,696 in all15%
  6. Pike CountyBest mid October · 17 checklists that week, 779 in all15%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Cauley CreekFulton County, best the second week of December · 27 checklists that week, 1,380 in all24%
  2. St. Catherine's Island (north)Liberty County, best mid September · 20 checklists that week, 162 in all20%
  3. St. Catherine's IslandLiberty County, best mid December · 38 checklists that week, 165 in all20%
  4. Walter F. George Recreation AreaStewart County, best mid December · 25 checklists that week, 392 in all19%

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

Best time of day

In Georgia, the Great Horned Owl is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (1.9% of those checklists).

0%2%4%6%12 am: too few checklists (334) to judge1 am: too few checklists (277) to judge2 am: too few checklists (264) to judge3 am: too few checklists (282) to judge4 am: too few checklists (463) to judge5 am: too few checklists (1513) to judge6 am: 5.1% of 16790 checklists7 am: 1.2% of 73569 checklists8 am: 0.4% of 104956 checklists9 am: 0.3% of 96241 checklists10 am: 0.3% of 81903 checklists11 am: 0.2% of 66236 checklists12 pm: 0.3% of 56159 checklists1 pm: 0.3% of 48260 checklists2 pm: 0.5% of 46435 checklists3 pm: 0.6% of 46015 checklists4 pm: 1.0% of 47438 checklists5 pm: 1.5% of 38866 checklists6 pm: 1.8% of 26032 checklists7 pm: 2.0% of 16610 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (5490) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (995) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (517) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (310) 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
January1.0%0.8%1.0%0.9%
February0.8%0.7%0.6%0.7%
March0.9%0.7%0.7%0.7%
April0.7%0.7%0.6%0.7%
May0.5%0.5%0.3%0.4%
June0.3%0.4%0.4%0.3%
July0.4%0.4%0.3%0.5%
August0.4%0.5%0.7%0.7%
September0.9%0.9%1.1%1.5%
October1.2%1.3%1.3%1.3%
November1.0%1.0%1.1%1.2%
December1.1%1.1%1.6%1.2%

Neighboring states

  • South Carolina: arrives late July, 2 weeks later than Georgia
  • Alabama: arrives late July, 2 weeks later than Georgia
  • Tennessee: arrives mid July, 1 week later than Georgia
  • North Carolina: arrives late June, 2 weeks earlier than Georgia

Common questions

When do Great Horned Owls arrive in Georgia?
Great Horned Owls are winter birds in Georgia: they arrive in the second week of July, peak in early October (1.3% of checklists), and most are gone by mid May.
When do Great Horned Owls leave Georgia?
Most Great Horned Owls have left Georgia by mid May, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Great Horned Owl in Georgia?
The Great Horned Owl is reported most often in early October, on about 1.3% of Georgia checklists.
Where in Georgia are Great Horned Owls seen most often?
By county, Washington County, Jeff Davis County, and Baker County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Great Horned Owl (counties with at least 200 checklists).