WhenToBird

Spinus psaltria · Fringillidae

When Do Lesser Goldfinches Arrive in Texas?

Adult male Lesser Goldfinch
Photo: Aitor, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

The Lesser Goldfinch is in Texas all year. It turns up on about 14% of checklists at its peak (the second week of September) and on 6.0% in its quietest week (late December).

When to look

PresentAll year
Peak weekSep 8-14the second week of September
Quietest weekDec 22-31late December

Best: the second week of September. Here all year. Peak: on about 14% of Texas checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novcommon
  12. Deccommon

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

0%5%10%15%Jan 1-7: 5.9% of 66038 checklistsJan 8-14: 6.2% of 52445 checklistsJan 15-21: 7.1% of 52985 checklistsJan 22-31: 7.9% of 71020 checklistsFeb 1-7: 9.2% of 52306 checklistsFeb 8-14: 9.3% of 55887 checklistsFeb 15-21: 11% of 69016 checklistsFeb 22-28: 9.6% of 52998 checklistsMar 1-7: 10% of 50836 checklistsMar 8-14: 10% of 51749 checklistsMar 15-21: 10% of 53731 checklistsMar 22-31: 10% of 82049 checklistsApr 1-7: 9.3% of 65854 checklistsApr 8-14: 8.5% of 78434 checklistsApr 15-21: 7.7% of 92302 checklistsApr 22-30: 8.4% of 122878 checklistsMay 1-7: 11% of 74592 checklistsMay 8-14: 12% of 61008 checklistsMay 15-21: 13% of 43365 checklistsMay 22-31: 13% of 52736 checklistsJun 1-7: 13% of 31643 checklistsJun 8-14: 13% of 30131 checklistsJun 15-21: 12% of 26802 checklistsJun 22-30: 12% of 32822 checklistsJul 1-7: 11% of 27213 checklistsJul 8-14: 12% of 24555 checklistsJul 15-21: 12% of 24146 checklistsJul 22-31: 12% of 34536 checklistsAug 1-7: 12% of 25764 checklistsAug 8-14: 13% of 26347 checklistsAug 15-21: 14% of 28431 checklistsAug 22-31: 14% of 42838 checklistsSep 1-7: 14% of 35070 checklistsSep 8-14: 14% of 33893 checklistsSep 15-21: 15% of 32572 checklistsSep 22-30: 12% of 43771 checklistsOct 1-7: 11% of 34143 checklistsOct 8-14: 10% of 37563 checklistsOct 15-21: 9.4% of 36263 checklistsOct 22-31: 8.1% of 49170 checklistsNov 1-7: 7.4% of 43301 checklistsNov 8-14: 6.3% of 48744 checklistsNov 15-21: 6.5% of 42213 checklistsNov 22-30: 6.0% of 54455 checklistsDec 1-7: 6.2% of 40166 checklistsDec 8-14: 6.2% of 41035 checklistsDec 15-21: 6.0% of 46983 checklistsDec 22-31: 6.0% of 73015 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 Texas 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 Texas

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Real CountyBest mid August · 33 checklists that week, 4,015 in all83%
  2. Brooks CountyBest the second week of August · 12 checklists that week, 1,822 in all68%
  3. Kendall CountyBest the second week of September · 302 checklists that week, 21,989 in all67%
  4. Bandera CountyBest late July · 91 checklists that week, 7,371 in all65%
  5. Kerr CountyBest the second week of September · 333 checklists that week, 18,703 in all64%
  6. Kinney CountyBest the second week of August · 29 checklists that week, 3,611 in all59%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Commons Ford Ranch Metro ParkTravis County, best early September · 103 checklists that week, 7,192 in all92%
  2. Stillhouse Hollow Nature PreserveTravis County, best late March · 22 checklists that week, 388 in all92%
  3. Pease District ParkTravis County, best late May · 20 checklists that week, 616 in all91%
  4. University of Texas at Austin Brackenridge Field LaboratoryTravis County, best late August · 24 checklists that week, 948 in all91%
  5. Great Hills Neighborhood ParkTravis County, best late April · 24 checklists that week, 688 in all90%

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

Best time of day

In Texas, the Lesser Goldfinch is most often listed on checklists started between 7 and 9 am (13% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%12 am: too few checklists (898) to judge1 am: too few checklists (756) to judge2 am: too few checklists (663) to judge3 am: too few checklists (741) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1537) to judge5 am: too few checklists (6113) to judge6 am: 10% of 74687 checklists7 am: 13% of 285131 checklists8 am: 13% of 329960 checklists9 am: 11% of 267889 checklists10 am: 9.0% of 218205 checklists11 am: 8.1% of 178879 checklists12 pm: 7.5% of 153722 checklists1 pm: 7.1% of 144662 checklists2 pm: 6.9% of 138578 checklists3 pm: 7.1% of 136878 checklists4 pm: 7.4% of 137550 checklists5 pm: 7.9% of 113599 checklists6 pm: 8.5% of 81743 checklists7 pm: 8.1% of 53396 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (17221) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (4048) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1965) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (990) 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
January5.9%6.2%7.1%7.9%
February9.2%9.3%11%9.6%
March10%10%10%10%
April9.3%8.5%7.7%8.4%
May11%12%13%13%
June13%13%12%12%
July11%12%12%12%
August12%13%14%14%
September14%14%15%12%
October11%10%9.4%8.1%
November7.4%6.3%6.5%6.0%
December6.2%6.2%6.0%6.0%

Neighboring states

  • New Mexico: all year, most in summer, peaks late August
  • Nebraska: summer visitor, peaks late August
  • Arizona: year-round, peaks late August
  • Colorado: summer visitor, peaks the second week of August

Common questions

When do Lesser Goldfinches arrive in Texas?
The Lesser Goldfinch is in Texas all year. It turns up on about 14% of checklists at its peak (the second week of September) and on 6.0% in its quietest week (late December).
When do Lesser Goldfinches leave Texas?
The Lesser Goldfinch does not leave Texas: it is reported all year, from 6.0% of checklists in late December to 14% in the second week of September.
When is the best time to see a Lesser Goldfinch in Texas?
The Lesser Goldfinch is reported most often in the second week of September, on about 14% of Texas checklists.
Where in Texas are Lesser Goldfinches seen most often?
By county, Real County, Brooks County, and Kendall County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Lesser Goldfinch (counties with at least 200 checklists).