WhenToBird

Centronyx henslowii · Passerellidae

When Do Henslow's Sparrows Arrive in Wisconsin?

Adult Henslow's Sparrow
Photo: ewransky, CC BY-SA 4.0 via iNaturalist

Henslow's Sparrows arrive in Wisconsin in early May, peak in the second week of June (1.6% of checklists), and most are gone by early August.

When to look

First arrivalsMay 1-7early May
Common byMay 1-7early May
PeakJun 8-14the second week of June
Most gone byAug 1-7early August

Best: the second week of June. First arrivals early May; most are gone by early August. Peak: on about 1.6% of Wisconsin checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marnot usually seen
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepnot usually seen
  10. Octnot usually seen
  11. Novnot usually seen
  12. Decnot usually seen

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

0%0.5%1%1.5%2%Jan 1-7: 0% of 27925 checklistsJan 8-14: 0% of 18337 checklistsJan 15-21: 0% of 17370 checklistsJan 22-31: 0% of 23777 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0% of 16656 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0% of 18286 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0% of 24739 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0% of 20113 checklistsMar 1-7: 0% of 24024 checklistsMar 8-14: 0% of 26722 checklistsMar 15-21: 0% of 27238 checklistsMar 22-31: 0% of 40171 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.1% of 34961 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.1% of 39128 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.2% of 38887 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.4% of 57231 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.7% of 55115 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.8% of 63098 checklistsMay 15-21: 1.0% of 49821 checklistsMay 22-31: 1.3% of 56796 checklistsJun 1-7: 1.7% of 33621 checklistsJun 8-14: 1.6% of 31282 checklistsJun 15-21: 1.3% of 30186 checklistsJun 22-30: 1.5% of 35128 checklistsJul 1-7: 1.5% of 27088 checklistsJul 8-14: 1.5% of 23293 checklistsJul 15-21: 1.3% of 20933 checklistsJul 22-31: 1.1% of 27595 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.9% of 19147 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.5% of 18286 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.2% of 19195 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.1% of 28229 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.1% of 22408 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.1% of 20857 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.1% of 20707 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.1% of 26469 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.1% of 21069 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.1% of 21011 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.1% of 20006 checklistsOct 22-31: 0% of 26362 checklistsNov 1-7: 0% of 18928 checklistsNov 8-14: 0% of 17052 checklistsNov 15-21: 0% of 16291 checklistsNov 22-30: 0% of 20564 checklistsDec 1-7: 0% of 15354 checklistsDec 8-14: 0% of 16294 checklistsDec 15-21: 0% of 21430 checklistsDec 22-31: 0% of 26314 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 Wisconsin 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 Wisconsin

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Iowa CountyBest late June · 564 checklists that week, 18,836 in all12%
  2. Lafayette CountyBest late May · 86 checklists that week, 1,911 in all8.6%
  3. Green CountyBest mid July · 74 checklists that week, 4,387 in all8.0%
  4. Portage CountyBest mid June · 562 checklists that week, 32,201 in all7.2%
  5. Waukesha CountyBest early June · 994 checklists that week, 43,790 in all6.1%
  6. Kenosha CountyBest mid July · 153 checklists that week, 11,654 in all5.3%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Kettle Moraine State Forest-Southern Unit (northeast)Waukesha County, best late May · 21 checklists that week, 211 in all81%
  2. Kettle Moraine State Forest-Northern Unit-Iansr (New Prospect)Fond du Lac County, best the second week of May · 32 checklists that week, 344 in all79%
  3. Thomson Memorial PrairieDane County, best early July · 27 checklists that week, 758 in all49%
  4. Richard Bong Recreation AreaKenosha County, best late July · 24 checklists that week, 602 in all38%
  5. Buena Vista Wildlife AreaPortage County, best the second week of June · 24 checklists that week, 519 in all38%

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

Best time of day

In Wisconsin, the Henslow's Sparrow is most often listed on checklists started between 5 and 7 am (1.2% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%1.5%2%12 am: too few checklists (993) to judge1 am: too few checklists (844) to judge2 am: too few checklists (839) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1488) to judge4 am: too few checklists (5344) to judge5 am: 1.8% of 27016 checklists6 am: 1.0% of 83973 checklists7 am: 0.6% of 160717 checklists8 am: 0.5% of 160531 checklists9 am: 0.4% of 136968 checklists10 am: 0.4% of 119110 checklists11 am: 0.3% of 99116 checklists12 pm: 0.2% of 85078 checklists1 pm: 0.2% of 80688 checklists2 pm: 0.2% of 79140 checklists3 pm: 0.2% of 78599 checklists4 pm: 0.2% of 69767 checklists5 pm: 0.3% of 53229 checklists6 pm: 0.5% of 38769 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (24396) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (10155) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (4990) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (2463) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (1281) 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%0%0%0%
February0%0%0%0%
March0%0%0%0%
April0.1%0.1%0.2%0.4%
May0.7%0.8%1.0%1.3%
June1.7%1.6%1.3%1.5%
July1.5%1.5%1.3%1.1%
August0.9%0.5%0.2%0.1%
September0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
October0.1%0.1%0.1%0%
November0%0%0%0%
December0%0%0%0%

Neighboring states

  • Illinois: arrives early May, in the same week than Wisconsin
  • Iowa: arrives late April, 1 week earlier than Wisconsin
  • Michigan: arrives the second week of May, 1 week later than Wisconsin
  • Minnesota: arrives mid May, 2 weeks later than Wisconsin

Common questions

When do Henslow's Sparrows arrive in Wisconsin?
Henslow's Sparrows arrive in Wisconsin in early May, peak in the second week of June (1.6% of checklists), and most are gone by early August.
When do Henslow's Sparrows leave Wisconsin?
Most Henslow's Sparrows have left Wisconsin by early August, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Henslow's Sparrow in Wisconsin?
The Henslow's Sparrow is reported most often in the second week of June, on about 1.6% of Wisconsin checklists.
Where in Wisconsin are Henslow's Sparrows seen most often?
By county, Iowa County, Lafayette County, and Green County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Henslow's Sparrow (counties with at least 200 checklists).