WhenToBird

Passer domesticus · Passeridae

When Do House Sparrows Arrive in Utah?

Adult male House Sparrow
Photo: Esteban Poveda, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

The House Sparrow is in Utah all year. It turns up on about 27% of checklists at its peak (mid February) and on 17% in its quietest week (the second week of September).

When to look

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

Best: mid February. Here all year. Peak: on about 27% of Utah checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%10%20%30%Jan 1-7: 27% of 10857 checklistsJan 8-14: 25% of 8333 checklistsJan 15-21: 25% of 8360 checklistsJan 22-31: 26% of 10516 checklistsFeb 1-7: 25% of 7416 checklistsFeb 8-14: 26% of 8082 checklistsFeb 15-21: 27% of 9643 checklistsFeb 22-28: 26% of 7960 checklistsMar 1-7: 26% of 7998 checklistsMar 8-14: 25% of 8581 checklistsMar 15-21: 25% of 8637 checklistsMar 22-31: 25% of 13006 checklistsApr 1-7: 24% of 10562 checklistsApr 8-14: 23% of 11694 checklistsApr 15-21: 24% of 11382 checklistsApr 22-30: 25% of 16626 checklistsMay 1-7: 26% of 13523 checklistsMay 8-14: 26% of 14714 checklistsMay 15-21: 26% of 13711 checklistsMay 22-31: 24% of 16546 checklistsJun 1-7: 23% of 10284 checklistsJun 8-14: 23% of 9530 checklistsJun 15-21: 22% of 8854 checklistsJun 22-30: 22% of 10566 checklistsJul 1-7: 22% of 7987 checklistsJul 8-14: 21% of 7471 checklistsJul 15-21: 22% of 7240 checklistsJul 22-31: 23% of 9329 checklistsAug 1-7: 23% of 6521 checklistsAug 8-14: 20% of 6423 checklistsAug 15-21: 20% of 6208 checklistsAug 22-31: 18% of 9089 checklistsSep 1-7: 17% of 7081 checklistsSep 8-14: 17% of 7306 checklistsSep 15-21: 17% of 7208 checklistsSep 22-30: 18% of 8876 checklistsOct 1-7: 20% of 7265 checklistsOct 8-14: 20% of 7226 checklistsOct 15-21: 21% of 7007 checklistsOct 22-31: 23% of 8443 checklistsNov 1-7: 22% of 6711 checklistsNov 8-14: 24% of 6290 checklistsNov 15-21: 26% of 6169 checklistsNov 22-30: 26% of 8228 checklistsDec 1-7: 27% of 6011 checklistsDec 8-14: 26% of 6044 checklistsDec 15-21: 27% of 6721 checklistsDec 22-31: 27% of 9982 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 Utah 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 Utah

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Carbon CountyBest late February · 56 checklists that week, 3,753 in all61%
  2. Iron CountyBest late December · 117 checklists that week, 8,774 in all47%
  3. Morgan CountyBest the second week of January · 17 checklists that week, 3,178 in all45%
  4. Uintah CountyBest mid December · 101 checklists that week, 9,143 in all44%
  5. Salt Lake CountyBest the second week of May · 3012 checklists that week, 104,432 in all41%
  6. Beaver CountyBest late April · 223 checklists that week, 6,956 in all40%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Bicentennial ParkIron County, best late July · 23 checklists that week, 468 in all94%
  2. East Canyon ParkIron County, best the second week of May · 23 checklists that week, 441 in all94%
  3. James Madison ParkSalt Lake County, best early January · 32 checklists that week, 936 in all90%
  4. Winchester ParkSalt Lake County, best late April · 26 checklists that week, 713 in all89%
  5. Mill CreekSalt Lake County, best early June · 21 checklists that week, 999 in all89%
  6. CookesSalt Lake County, best late May · 21 checklists that week, 351 in all89%

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

Best time of day

In Utah, the House Sparrow is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (32% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%40%12 am: too few checklists (242) to judge1 am: too few checklists (178) to judge2 am: too few checklists (169) to judge3 am: too few checklists (162) to judge4 am: too few checklists (284) to judge5 am: too few checklists (1984) to judge6 am: 28% of 11714 checklists7 am: 33% of 33209 checklists8 am: 31% of 46944 checklists9 am: 26% of 46290 checklists10 am: 23% of 43144 checklists11 am: 21% of 36893 checklists12 pm: 22% of 32758 checklists1 pm: 20% of 30142 checklists2 pm: 19% of 29414 checklists3 pm: 20% of 29491 checklists4 pm: 22% of 29154 checklists5 pm: 21% of 22256 checklists6 pm: 22% of 17383 checklists7 pm: 21% of 13099 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (6647) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1753) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (599) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (307) 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
January27%25%25%26%
February25%26%27%26%
March26%25%25%25%
April24%23%24%25%
May26%26%26%24%
June23%23%22%22%
July22%21%22%23%
August23%20%20%18%
September17%17%17%18%
October20%20%21%23%
November22%24%26%26%
December27%26%27%27%

Neighboring states

  • Wyoming: all year, most in winter, peaks mid February
  • Nevada: year-round, peaks mid May
  • Colorado: year-round, peaks the second week of May
  • Idaho: year-round, peaks mid February

Common questions

When do House Sparrows arrive in Utah?
The House Sparrow is in Utah all year. It turns up on about 27% of checklists at its peak (mid February) and on 17% in its quietest week (the second week of September).
When do House Sparrows leave Utah?
The House Sparrow does not leave Utah: it is reported all year, from 17% of checklists in the second week of September to 27% in mid February.
When is the best time to see a House Sparrow in Utah?
The House Sparrow is reported most often in mid February, on about 27% of Utah checklists.
Where in Utah are House Sparrows seen most often?
By county, Carbon County, Iron County, and Morgan County have the highest peak reporting rates for the House Sparrow (counties with at least 200 checklists).