WhenToBird

Leuconotopicus villosus · Picidae

When Do Hairy Woodpeckers Arrive in Missouri?

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

The Hairy Woodpecker is in Missouri all year. It turns up on about 14% of checklists at its peak (mid December) and on 7.1% in its quietest week (late July).

When to look

PresentAll year
Peak weekDec 15-21mid December
Quietest weekJul 22-31late July

Best: mid December. Here all year. Peak: on about 14% of Missouri checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  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%15%Jan 1-7: 12% of 12628 checklistsJan 8-14: 13% of 9076 checklistsJan 15-21: 13% of 8790 checklistsJan 22-31: 12% of 11986 checklistsFeb 1-7: 14% of 8987 checklistsFeb 8-14: 13% of 10394 checklistsFeb 15-21: 13% of 15472 checklistsFeb 22-28: 12% of 9917 checklistsMar 1-7: 11% of 9877 checklistsMar 8-14: 11% of 9570 checklistsMar 15-21: 10% of 10274 checklistsMar 22-31: 11% of 16156 checklistsApr 1-7: 11% of 12774 checklistsApr 8-14: 11% of 14048 checklistsApr 15-21: 11% of 14894 checklistsApr 22-30: 11% of 23288 checklistsMay 1-7: 11% of 22645 checklistsMay 8-14: 10% of 21384 checklistsMay 15-21: 9.6% of 13989 checklistsMay 22-31: 8.7% of 15784 checklistsJun 1-7: 8.8% of 9691 checklistsJun 8-14: 8.3% of 9036 checklistsJun 15-21: 8.4% of 7907 checklistsJun 22-30: 7.9% of 9831 checklistsJul 1-7: 8.4% of 8008 checklistsJul 8-14: 7.8% of 7202 checklistsJul 15-21: 7.2% of 7151 checklistsJul 22-31: 6.8% of 9833 checklistsAug 1-7: 7.4% of 7639 checklistsAug 8-14: 7.2% of 7507 checklistsAug 15-21: 7.1% of 7429 checklistsAug 22-31: 7.8% of 11182 checklistsSep 1-7: 10% of 9471 checklistsSep 8-14: 12% of 8501 checklistsSep 15-21: 12% of 8169 checklistsSep 22-30: 13% of 11572 checklistsOct 1-7: 12% of 9028 checklistsOct 8-14: 11% of 9413 checklistsOct 15-21: 11% of 8656 checklistsOct 22-31: 10% of 11625 checklistsNov 1-7: 11% of 8627 checklistsNov 8-14: 10% of 8284 checklistsNov 15-21: 12% of 8075 checklistsNov 22-30: 12% of 10430 checklistsDec 1-7: 13% of 7870 checklistsDec 8-14: 14% of 7567 checklistsDec 15-21: 13% of 9696 checklistsDec 22-31: 14% of 13142 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 Missouri 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 Missouri

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Daviess CountyBest late November · 31 checklists that week, 1,354 in all62%
  2. Osage CountyBest mid February · 31 checklists that week, 414 in all56%
  3. Crawford CountyBest the second week of March · 13 checklists that week, 1,081 in all55%
  4. Randolph CountyBest the second week of March · 18 checklists that week, 838 in all44%
  5. Maries CountyBest early May · 18 checklists that week, 266 in all43%
  6. Ray CountyBest the second week of May · 14 checklists that week, 323 in all42%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Sailboat CoveJackson County, best late March · 28 checklists that week, 616 in all67%
  2. Northwest ParkwayBuchanan County, best early May · 49 checklists that week, 292 in all51%
  3. Line Creek GreenwayPlatte County, best the second week of May · 37 checklists that week, 588 in all49%
  4. Ritter Springs ParkGreene County, best the second week of April · 23 checklists that week, 289 in all44%
  5. Rock Bridge Memorial State ParkBoone County, best early September · 23 checklists that week, 1,012 in all40%

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

Best time of day

In Missouri, the Hairy Woodpecker is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (15% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%20%12 am: too few checklists (205) to judge1 am: too few checklists (179) to judge2 am: too few checklists (204) to judge3 am: too few checklists (216) to judge4 am: too few checklists (630) to judge5 am: too few checklists (5072) to judge6 am: 15% of 27231 checklists7 am: 15% of 64162 checklists8 am: 13% of 67854 checklists9 am: 11% of 56515 checklists10 am: 9.5% of 47496 checklists11 am: 10% of 38845 checklists12 pm: 9.3% of 33383 checklists1 pm: 9.0% of 32503 checklists2 pm: 9.4% of 32615 checklists3 pm: 9.2% of 32514 checklists4 pm: 8.4% of 30274 checklists5 pm: 8.0% of 23446 checklists6 pm: 6.2% of 16374 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (10236) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (3133) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (722) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (405) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (261) 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
January12%13%13%12%
February14%13%13%12%
March11%11%10%11%
April11%11%11%11%
May11%10%9.6%8.7%
June8.8%8.3%8.4%7.9%
July8.4%7.8%7.2%6.8%
August7.4%7.2%7.1%7.8%
September10%12%12%13%
October12%11%11%10%
November11%10%12%12%
December13%14%13%14%

Neighboring states

  • Arkansas: year-round, peaks early October
  • Iowa: year-round, peaks mid December
  • Kansas: all year, most in winter, peaks late December
  • Illinois: year-round, peaks mid December

Common questions

When do Hairy Woodpeckers arrive in Missouri?
The Hairy Woodpecker is in Missouri all year. It turns up on about 14% of checklists at its peak (mid December) and on 7.1% in its quietest week (late July).
When do Hairy Woodpeckers leave Missouri?
The Hairy Woodpecker does not leave Missouri: it is reported all year, from 7.1% of checklists in late July to 14% in mid December.
When is the best time to see a Hairy Woodpecker in Missouri?
The Hairy Woodpecker is reported most often in mid December, on about 14% of Missouri checklists.
Where in Missouri are Hairy Woodpeckers seen most often?
By county, Daviess County, Osage County, and Crawford County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Hairy Woodpecker (counties with at least 200 checklists).