WhenToBird

Eremophila alpestris · Alaudidae

When Do Horned Larks Arrive in Oregon?

Adult Horned Lark
Photo: Laura Gaudette, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Horned Larks arrive in Oregon in the second week of January, peak in the second week of June (1.6% of checklists), and most are gone by late December.

When to look

First arrivalsJan 8-14the second week of January
Common byJan 8-14the second week of January
PeakJun 8-14the second week of June
Most gone byDec 22-31late December

Best: the second week of June. First arrivals the second week of January; most are gone by late December. Peak: on about 1.6% of Oregon checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novcommon
  12. Decuncommon

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

0%0.5%1%1.5%2%Jan 1-7: 0.3% of 34973 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.4% of 26807 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.8% of 26567 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.8% of 36019 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.9% of 24020 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.7% of 25765 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.9% of 31019 checklistsFeb 22-28: 1.0% of 24582 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.9% of 24834 checklistsMar 8-14: 1.3% of 24642 checklistsMar 15-21: 1.3% of 27420 checklistsMar 22-31: 1.1% of 39913 checklistsApr 1-7: 1.0% of 28817 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.9% of 31221 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.9% of 34402 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.8% of 47144 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.6% of 37716 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.8% of 39651 checklistsMay 15-21: 1.0% of 37496 checklistsMay 22-31: 1.4% of 56967 checklistsJun 1-7: 1.5% of 35893 checklistsJun 8-14: 1.8% of 31880 checklistsJun 15-21: 1.5% of 30942 checklistsJun 22-30: 1.1% of 38478 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.9% of 27409 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.9% of 25161 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.8% of 25473 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.8% of 33920 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.7% of 24310 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.6% of 23675 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.6% of 23623 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.6% of 33762 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.7% of 25120 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.8% of 24458 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.9% of 25528 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.8% of 31631 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.9% of 25498 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.7% of 25161 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.7% of 23701 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.8% of 30996 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.7% of 21089 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.7% of 21880 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.7% of 21501 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.5% of 28930 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.5% of 19807 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.3% of 21022 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.6% of 24817 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.4% of 37592 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 Oregon 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 Oregon

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Malheur CountyBest late March · 168 checklists that week, 4,699 in all28%
  2. Gilliam CountyBest late August · 41 checklists that week, 2,323 in all25%
  3. Morrow CountyBest mid April · 139 checklists that week, 3,484 in all20%
  4. Lake CountyBest late March · 351 checklists that week, 13,301 in all13%
  5. Sherman CountyBest early July · 55 checklists that week, 4,629 in all13%
  6. Wallowa CountyBest late February · 92 checklists that week, 9,170 in all11%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Christmas Valley LakeLake County, best early May · 26 checklists that week, 612 in all64%
  2. Thief Valley ReservoirUnion County, best early October · 22 checklists that week, 813 in all64%
  3. Steens Mountain Cooperative Management and Protection AreaHarney County, best the second week of September · 22 checklists that week, 194 in all61%
  4. Lower Klamath National Wildlife RefugeKlamath County, best mid February · 20 checklists that week, 331 in all58%

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

Best time of day

In Oregon, the Horned Lark is most often listed on checklists started between 10 am and 12 pm (1.1% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%1.5%12 am: too few checklists (1505) to judge1 am: too few checklists (675) to judge2 am: too few checklists (626) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1641) to judge4 am: too few checklists (3696) to judge5 am: too few checklists (14524) to judge6 am: 1.2% of 50677 checklists7 am: 0.9% of 125347 checklists8 am: 0.9% of 163668 checklists9 am: 1.0% of 160351 checklists10 am: 1.1% of 148940 checklists11 am: 1.0% of 124743 checklists12 pm: 0.8% of 112537 checklists1 pm: 0.8% of 98999 checklists2 pm: 0.8% of 94690 checklists3 pm: 0.7% of 87923 checklists4 pm: 0.6% of 75235 checklists5 pm: 0.5% of 54504 checklists6 pm: 0.6% of 40469 checklists7 pm: 0.4% of 33675 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (18715) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (5839) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (2704) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (1549) 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
January0.3%0.4%0.8%0.8%
February0.9%0.7%0.9%1.0%
March0.9%1.3%1.3%1.1%
April1.0%0.9%0.9%0.8%
May0.6%0.8%1.0%1.4%
June1.5%1.8%1.5%1.1%
July0.9%0.9%0.8%0.8%
August0.7%0.6%0.6%0.6%
September0.7%0.8%0.9%0.8%
October0.9%0.7%0.7%0.8%
November0.7%0.7%0.7%0.5%
December0.5%0.3%0.6%0.4%

Neighboring states

  • Washington: arrives early January, 1 week earlier than Oregon
  • Idaho: arrives the second week of December, 4 weeks earlier than Oregon
  • Nevada: year-round, peaks mid September
  • California: year-round, peaks the second week of November

Common questions

When do Horned Larks arrive in Oregon?
Horned Larks arrive in Oregon in the second week of January, peak in the second week of June (1.6% of checklists), and most are gone by late December.
When do Horned Larks leave Oregon?
Most Horned Larks have left Oregon by late December, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Horned Lark in Oregon?
The Horned Lark is reported most often in the second week of June, on about 1.6% of Oregon checklists.
Where in Oregon are Horned Larks seen most often?
By county, Malheur County, Gilliam County, and Morrow County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Horned Lark (counties with at least 200 checklists).