WhenToBird

Aythya affinis · Anatidae

When Do Lesser Scaups Arrive in Maine?

Adult male Lesser Scaup
Photo: Paul Lewis, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Lesser Scaups are winter birds in Maine: they arrive in early October, peak in early November (2.6% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of January.

When to look

First arrivalsOct 1-7early October
Common byOct 1-7early October
PeakNov 1-7early November
Most gone byJan 8-14the second week of January

Best: early November. First arrivals early October; most are gone by the second week of January. Peak: on about 2.6% of Maine checklists.

  1. Januncommon
  2. Febrare
  3. Maruncommon
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Mayrare
  6. Junnot usually seen
  7. Julnot usually seen
  8. Augnot usually seen
  9. Seprare
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decuncommon

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

0%1%2%3%Jan 1-7: 0.8% of 15499 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.5% of 11141 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.2% of 10729 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.1% of 15084 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.1% of 9403 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.1% of 11268 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.1% of 14061 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.1% of 9977 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.4% of 9649 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.4% of 11781 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.4% of 11613 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.9% of 17798 checklistsApr 1-7: 1.5% of 14638 checklistsApr 8-14: 1.1% of 16511 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.9% of 17164 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.7% of 22602 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.3% of 22556 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.1% of 27842 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.1% of 27748 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.1% of 38715 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.1% of 26916 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.1% of 23737 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.1% of 22733 checklistsJun 22-30: 0% of 28248 checklistsJul 1-7: 0% of 20290 checklistsJul 8-14: 0% of 18534 checklistsJul 15-21: 0% of 17319 checklistsJul 22-31: 0% of 22815 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.1% of 15004 checklistsAug 8-14: 0% of 14603 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.1% of 14972 checklistsAug 22-31: 0% of 19813 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.1% of 14567 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.1% of 14520 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.1% of 14339 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.2% of 16879 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.4% of 12959 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.7% of 13168 checklistsOct 15-21: 1.4% of 11184 checklistsOct 22-31: 2.3% of 13717 checklistsNov 1-7: 2.8% of 9823 checklistsNov 8-14: 2.7% of 9007 checklistsNov 15-21: 2.0% of 8528 checklistsNov 22-30: 1.0% of 10228 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.9% of 7505 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.6% of 7982 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.5% of 10455 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.3% of 14285 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 Maine 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 Maine

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Androscoggin CountyBest early November · 353 checklists that week, 16,955 in all28%
  2. Aroostook CountyBest late October · 247 checklists that week, 16,817 in all9.3%
  3. Penobscot CountyBest early November · 848 checklists that week, 56,895 in all5.0%
  4. Knox CountyBest late November · 474 checklists that week, 34,453 in all4.6%
  5. Kennebec CountyBest the second week of November · 580 checklists that week, 48,185 in all3.6%
  6. Somerset CountyBest the second week of November · 80 checklists that week, 12,202 in all2.4%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Sabattus PondAndroscoggin County, best late October · 43 checklists that week, 152 in all74%
  2. Round PondAndroscoggin County, best mid October · 34 checklists that week, 483 in all65%
  3. East Branch Sebasticook River ReservoirPenobscot County, best the second week of April · 33 checklists that week, 827 in all64%
  4. Martin PointAndroscoggin County, best the second week of November · 25 checklists that week, 332 in all56%
  5. Lake JosephineAroostook County, best the second week of October · 34 checklists that week, 460 in all56%
  6. Jagger PondYork County, best the second week of April · 75 checklists that week, 1,870 in all47%

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

Best time of day

In Maine, the Lesser Scaup is most often listed on checklists started between 11 am and 1 pm (0.5% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%12 am: too few checklists (510) to judge1 am: too few checklists (517) to judge2 am: too few checklists (581) to judge3 am: too few checklists (3242) to judge4 am: too few checklists (7221) to judge5 am: 0.1% of 19895 checklists6 am: 0.2% of 54578 checklists7 am: 0.4% of 92775 checklists8 am: 0.5% of 86962 checklists9 am: 0.5% of 78989 checklists10 am: 0.5% of 70954 checklists11 am: 0.5% of 59331 checklists12 pm: 0.5% of 50943 checklists1 pm: 0.5% of 49775 checklists2 pm: 0.4% of 49001 checklists3 pm: 0.4% of 43252 checklists4 pm: 0.3% of 33413 checklists5 pm: 0.2% of 25547 checklists6 pm: 0.1% of 18309 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (14287) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (5336) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2253) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1518) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (720) 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
January0.8%0.5%0.2%0.1%
February0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
March0.4%0.4%0.4%0.9%
April1.5%1.1%0.9%0.7%
May0.3%0.1%0.1%0.1%
June0.1%0.1%0.1%0%
July0%0%0%0%
August0.1%0%0.1%0%
September0.1%0.1%0.1%0.2%
October0.4%0.7%1.4%2.3%
November2.8%2.7%2.0%1.0%
December0.9%0.6%0.5%0.3%

Neighboring states

  • New Hampshire: arrives late October, 3 weeks later than Maine
  • Massachusetts: arrives late October, 3 weeks later than Maine
  • Vermont: arrives mid October, 2 weeks later than Maine
  • Rhode Island: arrives late October, 3 weeks later than Maine

Common questions

When do Lesser Scaups arrive in Maine?
Lesser Scaups are winter birds in Maine: they arrive in early October, peak in early November (2.6% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of January.
When do Lesser Scaups leave Maine?
Most Lesser Scaups have left Maine by the second week of January, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Lesser Scaup in Maine?
The Lesser Scaup is reported most often in early November, on about 2.6% of Maine checklists.
Where in Maine are Lesser Scaups seen most often?
By county, Androscoggin County, Aroostook County, and Penobscot County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Lesser Scaup (counties with at least 200 checklists).