WhenToBird

Tympanuchus cupido · Phasianidae

When Do Greater Prairie-Chickens Arrive in Kansas?

Adult male Greater Prairie-Chicken
Photo: Adam Jackson, CC0 1.0 via iNaturalist

Greater Prairie-Chickens mostly pass through Kansas: they arrive in mid March, peak in early April (1.5% of checklists), and most are gone by late April.

When to look

First arrivalsMar 15-21mid March
Common byMar 15-21mid March
PeakApr 1-7early April
Most gone byApr 22-30late April

Best: early April. First arrivals mid March; most are gone by late April. Peak: on about 1.5% of Kansas checklists.

  1. Janrare
  2. Febrare
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Julrare
  8. Augnot usually seen
  9. Sepnot usually seen
  10. Octrare
  11. Novrare
  12. Decrare

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

0%1%2%3%Jan 1-7: 0.1% of 8683 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.1% of 5710 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.1% of 5453 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.1% of 7868 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.1% of 5579 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.1% of 6307 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.1% of 7830 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.2% of 6124 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.4% of 6442 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.4% of 6925 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.6% of 7257 checklistsMar 22-31: 1.2% of 11527 checklistsApr 1-7: 1.1% of 8908 checklistsApr 8-14: 2.1% of 11070 checklistsApr 15-21: 1.0% of 11050 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.6% of 16381 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.3% of 15899 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.2% of 15349 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.2% of 10474 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.2% of 11264 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.3% of 6783 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.2% of 5654 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.1% of 4716 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.1% of 6232 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.1% of 5073 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.1% of 4528 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.1% of 4210 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.1% of 5986 checklistsAug 1-7: 0% of 4661 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.1% of 4762 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.1% of 4823 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.1% of 7214 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.1% of 5989 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.1% of 5549 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.1% of 5255 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.1% of 7370 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.1% of 5829 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.1% of 6183 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.1% of 5504 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.1% of 7289 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.1% of 5535 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.1% of 5462 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.1% of 4929 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.1% of 6627 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.2% of 4670 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.1% of 4805 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.1% of 6341 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.1% of 8186 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 Kansas 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 Kansas

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Gove CountyBest early April · 39 checklists that week, 1,282 in all35%
  2. Phillips CountyBest early April · 12 checklists that week, 418 in all34%
  3. Wabaunsee CountyBest mid April · 54 checklists that week, 1,550 in all21%
  4. Osborne CountyBest late March · 17 checklists that week, 255 in all21%
  5. Trego CountyBest the second week of April · 147 checklists that week, 936 in all20%
  6. Logan CountyBest late March · 55 checklists that week, 1,379 in all17%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Greater Flint Hills Fee (southeast)Riley County, best late April · 22 checklists that week, 141 in all40%
  2. Shawnee State Fishing LakeShawnee County, best late February · 27 checklists that week, 882 in all14%
  3. Tallgrass Prairie National PreserveChase County, best mid May · 27 checklists that week, 644 in all9.3%
  4. Cheyenne Bottoms FeeBarton County, best late April · 23 checklists that week, 176 in all7.7%

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

Best time of day

In Kansas, the Greater Prairie-Chicken is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (1.2% of those checklists).

0%1%2%3%12 am: too few checklists (150) to judge1 am: too few checklists (119) to judge2 am: too few checklists (97) to judge3 am: too few checklists (94) to judge4 am: too few checklists (124) to judge5 am: too few checklists (1459) to judge6 am: 2.8% of 12550 checklists7 am: 0.7% of 34128 checklists8 am: 0.3% of 45960 checklists9 am: 0.2% of 37806 checklists10 am: 0.1% of 32102 checklists11 am: 0.1% of 25896 checklists12 pm: 0.1% of 24203 checklists1 pm: 0.1% of 20269 checklists2 pm: 0.1% of 20772 checklists3 pm: 0.1% of 20978 checklists4 pm: 0.1% of 22094 checklists5 pm: 0.2% of 17739 checklists6 pm: 0.2% of 13963 checklists7 pm: 0.3% of 10110 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (4188) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (968) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (325) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (171) 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
January0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
February0.1%0.1%0.1%0.2%
March0.4%0.4%0.6%1.2%
April1.1%2.1%1.0%0.6%
May0.3%0.2%0.2%0.2%
June0.3%0.2%0.1%0.1%
July0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
August0%0.1%0.1%0.1%
September0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
October0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
November0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
December0.2%0.1%0.1%0.1%

Neighboring states

  • Nebraska: arrives early March, 2 weeks earlier than Kansas
  • South Dakota: arrives early October, 22 weeks earlier than Kansas

Common questions

When do Greater Prairie-Chickens arrive in Kansas?
Greater Prairie-Chickens mostly pass through Kansas: they arrive in mid March, peak in early April (1.5% of checklists), and most are gone by late April.
When do Greater Prairie-Chickens leave Kansas?
Most Greater Prairie-Chickens have left Kansas by late April, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Greater Prairie-Chicken in Kansas?
The Greater Prairie-Chicken is reported most often in early April, on about 1.5% of Kansas checklists.
Where in Kansas are Greater Prairie-Chickens seen most often?
By county, Gove County, Phillips County, and Wabaunsee County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Greater Prairie-Chicken (counties with at least 200 checklists).