WhenToBird

Charadrius vociferus · Charadriidae

When Do Killdeers Arrive in Massachusetts?

Adult Killdeer
Photo: Mason Holum, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Killdeers are winter birds in Massachusetts: the first arrive in late February, they are common by early March, peak in late March (12% of checklists), and most are gone by mid October.

When to look

First arrivalsFeb 22-28late February
Common byMar 1-7early March
PeakMar 22-31late March
Most gone byOct 15-21mid October

Best: late March. First arrivals late February; most are gone by mid October. Peak: on about 12% of Massachusetts checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novuncommon
  12. Decrare

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

0%5%10%15%Jan 1-7: 0.2% of 43252 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.3% of 30096 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.3% of 28760 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.2% of 38135 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.1% of 26442 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.3% of 29034 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.5% of 37383 checklistsFeb 22-28: 2.1% of 29977 checklistsMar 1-7: 4.3% of 29175 checklistsMar 8-14: 8.9% of 32399 checklistsMar 15-21: 12% of 34444 checklistsMar 22-31: 12% of 49126 checklistsApr 1-7: 12% of 36456 checklistsApr 8-14: 11% of 40908 checklistsApr 15-21: 9.7% of 42078 checklistsApr 22-30: 9.4% of 56465 checklistsMay 1-7: 9.2% of 56994 checklistsMay 8-14: 8.6% of 64079 checklistsMay 15-21: 9.1% of 52020 checklistsMay 22-31: 9.5% of 55402 checklistsJun 1-7: 10% of 30682 checklistsJun 8-14: 9.6% of 27557 checklistsJun 15-21: 9.2% of 26163 checklistsJun 22-30: 9.9% of 29576 checklistsJul 1-7: 9.4% of 23931 checklistsJul 8-14: 10% of 22389 checklistsJul 15-21: 11% of 22365 checklistsJul 22-31: 11% of 32631 checklistsAug 1-7: 12% of 25133 checklistsAug 8-14: 11% of 24610 checklistsAug 15-21: 10% of 25350 checklistsAug 22-31: 9.1% of 37198 checklistsSep 1-7: 9.0% of 27402 checklistsSep 8-14: 8.1% of 27700 checklistsSep 15-21: 7.3% of 28398 checklistsSep 22-30: 7.2% of 34646 checklistsOct 1-7: 6.7% of 28620 checklistsOct 8-14: 5.9% of 30144 checklistsOct 15-21: 5.1% of 28893 checklistsOct 22-31: 4.2% of 38869 checklistsNov 1-7: 2.8% of 29782 checklistsNov 8-14: 1.8% of 27582 checklistsNov 15-21: 1.1% of 26642 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.7% of 34390 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.5% of 25164 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.4% of 24892 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.2% of 29022 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.4% of 44323 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 Massachusetts 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 Massachusetts

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Essex CountyBest late March · 6394 checklists that week, 213,973 in all18%
  2. Suffolk CountyBest late June · 1949 checklists that week, 112,443 in all18%
  3. Hampden CountyBest the second week of August · 527 checklists that week, 35,410 in all17%
  4. Worcester CountyBest late March · 4093 checklists that week, 128,594 in all17%
  5. Bristol CountyBest the second week of July · 931 checklists that week, 65,262 in all16%
  6. Dukes CountyBest early July · 553 checklists that week, 23,670 in all15%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Tack Factory PondPlymouth County, best late July · 26 checklists that week, 238 in all98%
  2. Topsfield FairgroundsEssex County, best early August · 33 checklists that week, 2,143 in all96%
  3. Hells KitchenFranklin County, best late July · 20 checklists that week, 501 in all95%
  4. October Mountain State ForestBerkshire County, best mid July · 25 checklists that week, 473 in all92%

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

Best time of day

In Massachusetts, the Killdeer is most often listed on checklists started between 5 and 7 pm (8.5% of those checklists).

0%5%10%12 am: too few checklists (630) to judge1 am: too few checklists (657) to judge2 am: too few checklists (645) to judge3 am: too few checklists (850) to judge4 am: too few checklists (3787) to judge5 am: too few checklists (29743) to judge6 am: 8.7% of 108601 checklists7 am: 7.1% of 186104 checklists8 am: 7.0% of 185905 checklists9 am: 6.8% of 166049 checklists10 am: 6.0% of 150508 checklists11 am: 5.3% of 131024 checklists12 pm: 5.0% of 116804 checklists1 pm: 5.0% of 112055 checklists2 pm: 4.9% of 110246 checklists3 pm: 5.2% of 104376 checklists4 pm: 6.8% of 83736 checklists5 pm: 8.2% of 63723 checklists6 pm: 9.0% of 41435 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (21041) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (5240) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1722) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1094) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (704) 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
January0.2%0.3%0.3%0.2%
February0.1%0.3%0.5%2.1%
March4.3%8.9%12%12%
April12%11%9.7%9.4%
May9.2%8.6%9.1%9.5%
June10%9.6%9.2%9.9%
July9.4%10%11%11%
August12%11%10%9.1%
September9.0%8.1%7.3%7.2%
October6.7%5.9%5.1%4.2%
November2.8%1.8%1.1%0.7%
December0.5%0.4%0.2%0.4%

Neighboring states

  • Rhode Island: arrives the second week of February, 2 weeks earlier than Massachusetts
  • New Hampshire: arrives late February, in the same week than Massachusetts
  • Connecticut: arrives the second week of February, 2 weeks earlier than Massachusetts
  • Vermont: arrives early March, 1 week later than Massachusetts

Common questions

When do Killdeers arrive in Massachusetts?
Killdeers are winter birds in Massachusetts: the first arrive in late February, they are common by early March, peak in late March (12% of checklists), and most are gone by mid October.
When do Killdeers leave Massachusetts?
Most Killdeers have left Massachusetts by mid October, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until mid November.
When is the best time to see a Killdeer in Massachusetts?
The Killdeer is reported most often in late March, on about 12% of Massachusetts checklists.
Where in Massachusetts are Killdeers seen most often?
By county, Essex County, Suffolk County, and Hampden County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Killdeer (counties with at least 200 checklists).