WhenToBird

Leuconotopicus villosus · Picidae

When Do Hairy Woodpeckers Arrive in New York?

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

The Hairy Woodpecker is in New York all year. It turns up on about 15% of checklists at its peak (the second week of February) and on 9.8% in its quietest week (mid July).

When to look

PresentAll year
Peak weekFeb 8-14the second week of February
Quietest weekJul 15-21mid July

Best: the second week of February. Here all year. Peak: on about 15% of New York checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augpeak season
  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%20%Jan 1-7: 13% of 66410 checklistsJan 8-14: 13% of 49310 checklistsJan 15-21: 13% of 49919 checklistsJan 22-31: 14% of 62513 checklistsFeb 1-7: 14% of 43526 checklistsFeb 8-14: 15% of 49753 checklistsFeb 15-21: 16% of 65147 checklistsFeb 22-28: 13% of 50173 checklistsMar 1-7: 13% of 50325 checklistsMar 8-14: 12% of 55371 checklistsMar 15-21: 12% of 56293 checklistsMar 22-31: 12% of 82677 checklistsApr 1-7: 12% of 65295 checklistsApr 8-14: 12% of 73080 checklistsApr 15-21: 13% of 73857 checklistsApr 22-30: 13% of 106093 checklistsMay 1-7: 13% of 102772 checklistsMay 8-14: 13% of 110051 checklistsMay 15-21: 13% of 94797 checklistsMay 22-31: 11% of 101272 checklistsJun 1-7: 11% of 59471 checklistsJun 8-14: 11% of 55497 checklistsJun 15-21: 12% of 51761 checklistsJun 22-30: 11% of 59219 checklistsJul 1-7: 11% of 48226 checklistsJul 8-14: 10% of 42315 checklistsJul 15-21: 9.5% of 40637 checklistsJul 22-31: 9.8% of 57183 checklistsAug 1-7: 10% of 40461 checklistsAug 8-14: 11% of 39880 checklistsAug 15-21: 11% of 41146 checklistsAug 22-31: 12% of 63381 checklistsSep 1-7: 13% of 48640 checklistsSep 8-14: 15% of 47882 checklistsSep 15-21: 15% of 49063 checklistsSep 22-30: 15% of 57906 checklistsOct 1-7: 15% of 48447 checklistsOct 8-14: 13% of 51901 checklistsOct 15-21: 13% of 46717 checklistsOct 22-31: 13% of 61992 checklistsNov 1-7: 13% of 44593 checklistsNov 8-14: 14% of 42566 checklistsNov 15-21: 14% of 39675 checklistsNov 22-30: 14% of 51197 checklistsDec 1-7: 15% of 36567 checklistsDec 8-14: 15% of 37254 checklistsDec 15-21: 15% of 43754 checklistsDec 22-31: 15% of 62470 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 New York 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 New York

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Lewis CountyBest early December · 32 checklists that week, 5,920 in all58%
  2. Hamilton CountyBest the second week of January · 70 checklists that week, 13,964 in all53%
  3. Otsego CountyBest late January · 233 checklists that week, 15,810 in all42%
  4. Cattaraugus CountyBest late January · 174 checklists that week, 12,342 in all40%
  5. Clinton CountyBest the second week of February · 213 checklists that week, 8,764 in all39%
  6. Allegany CountyBest the second week of December · 110 checklists that week, 11,955 in all39%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Nassau LakeRensselaer County, best the second week of September · 29 checklists that week, 1,459 in all84%
  2. Hubbard County ParkSuffolk County, best mid December · 26 checklists that week, 144 in all82%
  3. Otis Pike Preserve - West (Jones Pond)Suffolk County, best early January · 21 checklists that week, 743 in all80%
  4. Goodhue ParkRichmond County, best late March · 21 checklists that week, 702 in all75%

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

Best time of day

In New York, the Hairy Woodpecker is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (19% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%20%12 am: too few checklists (1146) to judge1 am: too few checklists (1055) to judge2 am: too few checklists (1121) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1353) to judge4 am: too few checklists (4785) to judge5 am: too few checklists (32052) to judge6 am: 19% of 124869 checklists7 am: 19% of 298506 checklists8 am: 17% of 337334 checklists9 am: 14% of 307787 checklists10 am: 12% of 270801 checklists11 am: 11% of 233238 checklists12 pm: 11% of 213830 checklists1 pm: 10% of 193321 checklists2 pm: 10% of 180741 checklists3 pm: 10% of 170348 checklists4 pm: 9.4% of 147224 checklists5 pm: 9.9% of 111962 checklists6 pm: 9.2% of 78261 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (44425) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (15648) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (4795) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (2454) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (1378) 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
January13%13%13%14%
February14%15%16%13%
March13%12%12%12%
April12%12%13%13%
May13%13%13%11%
June11%11%12%11%
July11%10%9.5%9.8%
August10%11%11%12%
September13%15%15%15%
October15%13%13%13%
November13%14%14%14%
December15%15%15%15%

Neighboring states

  • Connecticut: year-round, peaks mid February
  • New Jersey: year-round, peaks the second week of December
  • Pennsylvania: year-round, peaks late September
  • Vermont: year-round, peaks the second week of February

Common questions

When do Hairy Woodpeckers arrive in New York?
The Hairy Woodpecker is in New York all year. It turns up on about 15% of checklists at its peak (the second week of February) and on 9.8% in its quietest week (mid July).
When do Hairy Woodpeckers leave New York?
The Hairy Woodpecker does not leave New York: it is reported all year, from 9.8% of checklists in mid July to 15% in the second week of February.
When is the best time to see a Hairy Woodpecker in New York?
The Hairy Woodpecker is reported most often in the second week of February, on about 15% of New York checklists.
Where in New York are Hairy Woodpeckers seen most often?
By county, Lewis County, Hamilton County, and Otsego County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Hairy Woodpecker (counties with at least 200 checklists).