WhenToBird

Leuconotopicus villosus · Picidae

When Do Hairy Woodpeckers Arrive in Kansas?

Adult male Hairy Woodpecker
Photo: yongestation, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Hairy Woodpeckers are in Kansas all year, but most are here in winter: numbers build from the second week of September, peak in late December (9.4% of checklists), and fall back by mid March. In the quietest week (mid July) they are still on about 2.7% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildSep 8-14the second week of September
PeakDec 22-31late December
Fall back byMar 15-21mid March
FewestJul 15-21mid July

Best: late December. Here all year; numbers build from the second week of September and fall back by mid March. Peak: on about 9.4% of Kansas checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Juncommon
  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%5%10%Jan 1-7: 9.0% of 8683 checklistsJan 8-14: 7.2% of 5710 checklistsJan 15-21: 7.5% of 5453 checklistsJan 22-31: 7.5% of 7868 checklistsFeb 1-7: 7.5% of 5579 checklistsFeb 8-14: 7.5% of 6307 checklistsFeb 15-21: 7.7% of 7830 checklistsFeb 22-28: 6.3% of 6124 checklistsMar 1-7: 5.9% of 6442 checklistsMar 8-14: 6.8% of 6925 checklistsMar 15-21: 5.8% of 7257 checklistsMar 22-31: 6.0% of 11527 checklistsApr 1-7: 6.1% of 8908 checklistsApr 8-14: 5.2% of 11070 checklistsApr 15-21: 6.1% of 11050 checklistsApr 22-30: 7.2% of 16381 checklistsMay 1-7: 7.5% of 15899 checklistsMay 8-14: 8.3% of 15349 checklistsMay 15-21: 7.8% of 10474 checklistsMay 22-31: 5.4% of 11264 checklistsJun 1-7: 4.7% of 6783 checklistsJun 8-14: 3.2% of 5654 checklistsJun 15-21: 3.3% of 4716 checklistsJun 22-30: 3.4% of 6232 checklistsJul 1-7: 3.1% of 5073 checklistsJul 8-14: 3.0% of 4528 checklistsJul 15-21: 2.1% of 4210 checklistsJul 22-31: 2.8% of 5986 checklistsAug 1-7: 4.2% of 4661 checklistsAug 8-14: 3.8% of 4762 checklistsAug 15-21: 3.8% of 4823 checklistsAug 22-31: 4.4% of 7214 checklistsSep 1-7: 6.0% of 5989 checklistsSep 8-14: 7.4% of 5549 checklistsSep 15-21: 6.9% of 5255 checklistsSep 22-30: 7.3% of 7370 checklistsOct 1-7: 7.2% of 5829 checklistsOct 8-14: 7.3% of 6183 checklistsOct 15-21: 6.4% of 5504 checklistsOct 22-31: 6.4% of 7289 checklistsNov 1-7: 6.2% of 5535 checklistsNov 8-14: 6.8% of 5462 checklistsNov 15-21: 7.4% of 4929 checklistsNov 22-30: 8.0% of 6627 checklistsDec 1-7: 7.7% of 4670 checklistsDec 8-14: 8.4% of 4805 checklistsDec 15-21: 10% of 6341 checklistsDec 22-31: 9.4% 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. Ottawa CountyBest the second week of January · 11 checklists that week, 523 in all43%
  2. Rice CountyBest late January · 17 checklists that week, 572 in all42%
  3. Osborne CountyBest late September · 10 checklists that week, 255 in all36%
  4. Cloud CountyBest the second week of January · 15 checklists that week, 586 in all33%
  5. Thomas CountyBest late February · 10 checklists that week, 680 in all32%
  6. Scott CountyBest mid November · 45 checklists that week, 1,780 in all31%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Cedar Niles (Future)Johnson County, best the second week of May · 32 checklists that week, 315 in all57%
  2. Scott State ParkScott County, best mid November · 21 checklists that week, 519 in all51%
  3. Overland Park Arboretum and Botanical GardensJohnson County, best mid February · 22 checklists that week, 1,032 in all48%
  4. Kansas Ecological ReservesDouglas County, best early May · 75 checklists that week, 563 in all48%
  5. Pratt County Lake (west)Pratt County, best the second week of December · 34 checklists that week, 191 in all42%
  6. Kill Creek ParkJohnson County, best late December · 24 checklists that week, 1,305 in all39%

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

Best time of day

In Kansas, the Hairy Woodpecker is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (8.8% of those checklists).

0%5%10%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: 9.3% of 12550 checklists7 am: 8.6% of 34128 checklists8 am: 8.2% of 45960 checklists9 am: 7.4% of 37806 checklists10 am: 6.9% of 32102 checklists11 am: 5.4% of 25896 checklists12 pm: 5.2% of 24203 checklists1 pm: 5.7% of 20269 checklists2 pm: 6.1% of 20772 checklists3 pm: 6.2% of 20978 checklists4 pm: 5.3% of 22094 checklists5 pm: 4.5% of 17739 checklists6 pm: 4.1% of 13963 checklists7 pm: 3.1% 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
January9.0%7.2%7.5%7.5%
February7.5%7.5%7.7%6.3%
March5.9%6.8%5.8%6.0%
April6.1%5.2%6.1%7.2%
May7.5%8.3%7.8%5.4%
June4.7%3.2%3.3%3.4%
July3.1%3.0%2.1%2.8%
August4.2%3.8%3.8%4.4%
September6.0%7.4%6.9%7.3%
October7.2%7.3%6.4%6.4%
November6.2%6.8%7.4%8.0%
December7.7%8.4%10%9.4%

Neighboring states

  • Nebraska: arrives late August, 2 weeks earlier than Kansas
  • Oklahoma: arrives the second week of August, 4 weeks earlier than Kansas
  • Missouri: year-round, peaks mid December
  • Arkansas: year-round, peaks early October

Common questions

When do Hairy Woodpeckers arrive in Kansas?
Hairy Woodpeckers are in Kansas all year, but most are here in winter: numbers build from the second week of September, peak in late December (9.4% of checklists), and fall back by mid March. In the quietest week (mid July) they are still on about 2.7% of checklists.
When do Hairy Woodpeckers leave Kansas?
Hairy Woodpeckers never fully leave Kansas: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by mid March, but some are still reported in every week, about 2.7% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Hairy Woodpecker in Kansas?
The Hairy Woodpecker is reported most often in late December, on about 9.4% of Kansas checklists.
Where in Kansas are Hairy Woodpeckers seen most often?
By county, Ottawa County, Rice County, and Osborne County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Hairy Woodpecker (counties with at least 200 checklists).