WhenToBird

Leucophaeus atricilla · Laridae

When Do Laughing Gulls Arrive in New Jersey?

Adult Laughing Gull
Photo: Drew Baxter, CC0 1.0 via iNaturalist

Laughing Gulls reach New Jersey in mid March, are common by the second week of April, peak in the second week of August (33% of checklists), and most are gone by mid October.

When to look

First arrivalsMar 15-21mid March
Common byApr 8-14the second week of April
PeakAug 8-14the second week of August
Most gone byOct 15-21mid October

Best: the second week of August. First arrivals mid March; most are gone by mid October. Peak: on about 33% of New Jersey checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Maruncommon
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novuncommon
  12. Decrare

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

0%10%20%30%40%Jan 1-7: 0.1% of 28167 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.1% of 20583 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.1% of 19739 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.1% of 24586 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.1% of 17226 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.1% of 19567 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.1% of 26553 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.1% of 19046 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.2% of 17969 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.7% of 18976 checklistsMar 15-21: 1.3% of 18581 checklistsMar 22-31: 4.5% of 27590 checklistsApr 1-7: 8.9% of 21202 checklistsApr 8-14: 14% of 23609 checklistsApr 15-21: 20% of 25056 checklistsApr 22-30: 22% of 36679 checklistsMay 1-7: 25% of 38378 checklistsMay 8-14: 27% of 44071 checklistsMay 15-21: 33% of 34076 checklistsMay 22-31: 26% of 32558 checklistsJun 1-7: 22% of 18049 checklistsJun 8-14: 21% of 15597 checklistsJun 15-21: 23% of 14894 checklistsJun 22-30: 25% of 17187 checklistsJul 1-7: 26% of 13406 checklistsJul 8-14: 27% of 12550 checklistsJul 15-21: 29% of 12358 checklistsJul 22-31: 31% of 18382 checklistsAug 1-7: 32% of 13689 checklistsAug 8-14: 34% of 14006 checklistsAug 15-21: 32% of 14483 checklistsAug 22-31: 27% of 23182 checklistsSep 1-7: 25% of 17984 checklistsSep 8-14: 23% of 18320 checklistsSep 15-21: 22% of 20491 checklistsSep 22-30: 22% of 26176 checklistsOct 1-7: 20% of 24112 checklistsOct 8-14: 17% of 24603 checklistsOct 15-21: 13% of 24549 checklistsOct 22-31: 10% of 26206 checklistsNov 1-7: 6.9% of 17469 checklistsNov 8-14: 6.0% of 15102 checklistsNov 15-21: 4.0% of 14958 checklistsNov 22-30: 2.8% of 19447 checklistsDec 1-7: 1.7% of 14017 checklistsDec 8-14: 1.1% of 14625 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.2% of 16937 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.1% of 26651 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 Jersey 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 Jersey

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Cape May CountyBest mid July · 1905 checklists that week, 189,832 in all89%
  2. Atlantic CountyBest early August · 376 checklists that week, 28,208 in all70%
  3. Ocean CountyBest late July · 1753 checklists that week, 87,340 in all65%
  4. Cumberland CountyBest late May · 763 checklists that week, 13,927 in all61%
  5. Hudson CountyBest mid August · 334 checklists that week, 21,191 in all48%
  6. Monmouth CountyBest the second week of August · 1148 checklists that week, 79,748 in all38%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Pierces Point PondCape May County, best mid May · 27 checklists that week, 363 in all100%
  2. Lake Lily (Cape May Point)Cape May County, best late July · 35 checklists that week, 1,952 in all100%
  3. Great Bay Boulevard Wildlife Management AreaOcean County, best the second week of August · 25 checklists that week, 1,138 in all100%
  4. Thorofare IslandCape May County, best late July · 28 checklists that week, 2,059 in all100%
  5. Cape May Point BeachCape May County, best the second week of August · 33 checklists that week, 5,796 in all100%
  6. Island Beach State Park (Sedge Islands)Ocean County, best the second week of August · 20 checklists that week, 211 in all100%

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

Best time of day

In New Jersey, the Laughing Gull is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (19% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%12 am: too few checklists (746) to judge1 am: too few checklists (640) to judge2 am: too few checklists (606) to judge3 am: too few checklists (755) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1681) to judge5 am: too few checklists (11258) to judge6 am: 24% of 50447 checklists7 am: 16% of 118312 checklists8 am: 14% of 123273 checklists9 am: 14% of 107783 checklists10 am: 14% of 97537 checklists11 am: 13% of 82427 checklists12 pm: 12% of 72581 checklists1 pm: 13% of 71478 checklists2 pm: 13% of 69994 checklists3 pm: 13% of 66822 checklists4 pm: 14% of 55950 checklists5 pm: 17% of 41360 checklists6 pm: 18% of 28122 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (14727) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (4257) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1273) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (920) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (693) 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
January0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
February0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
March0.2%0.7%1.3%4.5%
April8.9%14%20%22%
May25%27%33%26%
June22%21%23%25%
July26%27%29%31%
August32%34%32%27%
September25%23%22%22%
October20%17%13%10%
November6.9%6.0%4.0%2.8%
December1.7%1.1%0.2%0.1%

Neighboring states

  • Delaware: arrives mid March, in the same week than New Jersey
  • Connecticut: arrives late May, 9 weeks later than New Jersey
  • Pennsylvania: arrives the second week of July, 15 weeks later than New Jersey
  • New York: arrives early April, 2 weeks later than New Jersey

Common questions

When do Laughing Gulls arrive in New Jersey?
Laughing Gulls reach New Jersey in mid March, are common by the second week of April, peak in the second week of August (33% of checklists), and most are gone by mid October.
When do Laughing Gulls leave New Jersey?
Most Laughing Gulls have left New Jersey by mid October, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until late November.
When is the best time to see a Laughing Gull in New Jersey?
The Laughing Gull is reported most often in the second week of August, on about 33% of New Jersey checklists.
Where in New Jersey are Laughing Gulls seen most often?
By county, Cape May County, Atlantic County, and Ocean County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Laughing Gull (counties with at least 200 checklists).