WhenToBird

Sternula antillarum · Laridae

When Do Least Terns Arrive in Rhode Island?

Adult Least Tern
Photo: datadan, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Least Terns reach Rhode Island in early May, are common by mid May, peak in mid July (22% of checklists), and most are gone by late August.

When to look

First arrivalsMay 1-7early May
Common byMay 15-21mid May
PeakJul 15-21mid July
Most gone byAug 22-31late August

Best: mid July. First arrivals early May; most are gone by late August. Peak: on about 22% of Rhode Island checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marnot usually seen
  4. Aprnot usually seen
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octnot usually seen
  11. Novnot usually seen
  12. Decnot usually seen

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

0%10%20%30%Jan 1-7: 0% of 5678 checklistsJan 8-14: 0% of 4004 checklistsJan 15-21: 0% of 3691 checklistsJan 22-31: 0% of 4738 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0% of 3178 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0% of 3262 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0% of 4286 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0% of 3449 checklistsMar 1-7: 0% of 3014 checklistsMar 8-14: 0% of 3259 checklistsMar 15-21: 0% of 3320 checklistsMar 22-31: 0% of 4692 checklistsApr 1-7: 0% of 3280 checklistsApr 8-14: 0% of 3872 checklistsApr 15-21: 0% of 4037 checklistsApr 22-30: 0% of 5595 checklistsMay 1-7: 2.1% of 5699 checklistsMay 8-14: 5.6% of 6089 checklistsMay 15-21: 8.0% of 4937 checklistsMay 22-31: 8.8% of 5445 checklistsJun 1-7: 10% of 3031 checklistsJun 8-14: 9.7% of 2793 checklistsJun 15-21: 10% of 2736 checklistsJun 22-30: 14% of 3318 checklistsJul 1-7: 18% of 2629 checklistsJul 8-14: 23% of 2561 checklistsJul 15-21: 22% of 2580 checklistsJul 22-31: 22% of 3654 checklistsAug 1-7: 19% of 2629 checklistsAug 8-14: 16% of 2912 checklistsAug 15-21: 12% of 2850 checklistsAug 22-31: 7.5% of 4007 checklistsSep 1-7: 2.9% of 2893 checklistsSep 8-14: 1.4% of 2850 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.2% of 2770 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.1% of 3888 checklistsOct 1-7: 0% of 3174 checklistsOct 8-14: 0% of 3278 checklistsOct 15-21: 0% of 3008 checklistsOct 22-31: 0% of 3678 checklistsNov 1-7: 0% of 3270 checklistsNov 8-14: 0% of 3405 checklistsNov 15-21: 0% of 2907 checklistsNov 22-30: 0% of 3607 checklistsDec 1-7: 0% of 2415 checklistsDec 8-14: 0% of 2345 checklistsDec 15-21: 0% of 2836 checklistsDec 22-31: 0% of 4826 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 Rhode Island 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 Rhode Island

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Washington CountyBest mid July · 955 checklists that week, 65,038 in all45%
  2. Newport CountyBest late July · 708 checklists that week, 33,574 in all23%
  3. Kent CountyBest the second week of July · 211 checklists that week, 16,966 in all2.2%
  4. Bristol CountyBest mid July · 277 checklists that week, 15,899 in all1.0%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. South Shore Management AreaWashington County, best mid July · 74 checklists that week, 1,182 in all98%
  2. Quonochontaug PondWashington County, best mid July · 102 checklists that week, 2,308 in all93%
  3. Napatree PointWashington County, best the second week of July · 122 checklists that week, 3,109 in all90%
  4. Briggs MarshNewport County, best mid July · 65 checklists that week, 223 in all87%
  5. Trustom Pond National Wildlife Refuge (Card Ponds)Washington County, best mid June · 21 checklists that week, 818 in all83%
  6. Charlestown BreachwayWashington County, best the second week of July · 34 checklists that week, 775 in all81%

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

Best time of day

In Rhode Island, the Least Tern is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (5.6% of those checklists).

0%2%4%6%8%12 am: too few checklists (42) to judge1 am: too few checklists (58) to judge2 am: too few checklists (45) to judge3 am: too few checklists (69) to judge4 am: too few checklists (319) to judge5 am: too few checklists (3170) to judge6 am: 7.8% of 10493 checklists7 am: 4.3% of 17631 checklists8 am: 3.8% of 18834 checklists9 am: 3.4% of 17725 checklists10 am: 3.0% of 16696 checklists11 am: 3.1% of 14799 checklists12 pm: 2.7% of 12580 checklists1 pm: 2.7% of 12779 checklists2 pm: 2.8% of 12302 checklists3 pm: 2.6% of 11884 checklists4 pm: 3.7% of 9762 checklists5 pm: 4.3% of 6442 checklists6 pm: 5.8% of 3947 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (2119) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (452) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (105) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (69) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (53) 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%0%0%0%
May2.1%5.6%8.0%8.8%
June10%9.7%10%14%
July18%23%22%22%
August19%16%12%7.5%
September2.9%1.4%0.2%0.1%
October0%0%0%0%
November0%0%0%0%
December0%0%0%0%

Neighboring states

  • Massachusetts: arrives early May, in the same week than Rhode Island
  • Connecticut: arrives early May, in the same week than Rhode Island
  • New Hampshire: arrives mid May, 2 weeks later than Rhode Island
  • New Jersey: arrives late April, 1 week earlier than Rhode Island

Common questions

When do Least Terns arrive in Rhode Island?
Least Terns reach Rhode Island in early May, are common by mid May, peak in mid July (22% of checklists), and most are gone by late August.
When do Least Terns leave Rhode Island?
Most Least Terns have left Rhode Island by late August, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until the second week of September.
When is the best time to see a Least Tern in Rhode Island?
The Least Tern is reported most often in mid July, on about 22% of Rhode Island checklists.
Where in Rhode Island are Least Terns seen most often?
By county, Washington County, Newport County, and Kent County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Least Tern (counties with at least 200 checklists).