WhenToBird

Melospiza lincolnii · Passerellidae

When Do Lincoln's Sparrows Arrive in Oregon?

Adult Lincoln's Sparrow
Photo: Elijah Jaeger, CC0 1.0 via iNaturalist

Lincoln's Sparrows reach Oregon in late August, are common by early September, peak in mid April (5.9% of checklists), and most are gone by early May.

When to look

First arrivalsAug 22-31late August
Common bySep 1-7early September
PeakApr 15-21mid April
Most gone byMay 1-7early May

Best: mid April. First arrivals late August; most are gone by early May. Peak: on about 5.9% of Oregon checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maycommon
  6. Junrare
  7. Julrare
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novcommon
  12. Deccommon

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

0%2%4%6%8%Jan 1-7: 3.3% of 34973 checklistsJan 8-14: 3.3% of 26807 checklistsJan 15-21: 3.0% of 26567 checklistsJan 22-31: 3.1% of 36019 checklistsFeb 1-7: 2.8% of 24020 checklistsFeb 8-14: 2.2% of 25765 checklistsFeb 15-21: 2.0% of 31019 checklistsFeb 22-28: 2.2% of 24582 checklistsMar 1-7: 2.0% of 24834 checklistsMar 8-14: 2.2% of 24642 checklistsMar 15-21: 2.2% of 27420 checklistsMar 22-31: 2.2% of 39913 checklistsApr 1-7: 3.0% of 28817 checklistsApr 8-14: 4.6% of 31221 checklistsApr 15-21: 7.1% of 34402 checklistsApr 22-30: 5.9% of 47144 checklistsMay 1-7: 2.5% of 37716 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.6% of 39651 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.3% of 37496 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.3% of 56967 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.5% of 35893 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.5% of 31880 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.6% of 30942 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.8% of 38478 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.8% of 27409 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.9% of 25161 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.7% of 25473 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.5% of 33920 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.3% of 24310 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.3% of 23675 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.3% of 23623 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.6% of 33762 checklistsSep 1-7: 2.4% of 25120 checklistsSep 8-14: 4.2% of 24458 checklistsSep 15-21: 5.4% of 25528 checklistsSep 22-30: 5.4% of 31631 checklistsOct 1-7: 4.5% of 25498 checklistsOct 8-14: 4.2% of 25161 checklistsOct 15-21: 3.9% of 23701 checklistsOct 22-31: 3.9% of 30996 checklistsNov 1-7: 3.6% of 21089 checklistsNov 8-14: 3.9% of 21880 checklistsNov 15-21: 3.6% of 21501 checklistsNov 22-30: 3.9% of 28930 checklistsDec 1-7: 4.3% of 19807 checklistsDec 8-14: 3.7% of 21022 checklistsDec 15-21: 3.6% of 24817 checklistsDec 22-31: 3.4% of 37592 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 Oregon 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.

Embed this map on your site

Where in Oregon

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Columbia CountyBest the second week of December · 443 checklists that week, 27,750 in all17%
  2. Harney CountyBest mid September · 1415 checklists that week, 40,943 in all15%
  3. Deschutes CountyBest mid April · 2070 checklists that week, 86,260 in all13%
  4. Crook CountyBest mid September · 151 checklists that week, 9,466 in all13%
  5. Jackson CountyBest mid April · 1733 checklists that week, 60,428 in all13%
  6. Lake CountyBest mid September · 261 checklists that week, 13,301 in all11%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Middle Fork Ash CreekPolk County, best late January · 39 checklists that week, 355 in all68%
  2. Fernhill Wetlands (east)Washington County, best late January · 24 checklists that week, 521 in all68%
  3. Williams CanyonHarney County, best mid September · 39 checklists that week, 834 in all64%
  4. Mount Pisgah Park (Thompson Slough)Lane County, best early December · 25 checklists that week, 575 in all63%
  5. Little Crater LakeClackamas County, best late June · 25 checklists that week, 211 in all60%
  6. Fern Ridge Wildlife Area (Coyote Creek)Lane County, best late September · 36 checklists that week, 981 in all54%

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

Best time of day

In Oregon, the Lincoln's Sparrow is most often listed on checklists started between 7 and 9 am (3.9% of those checklists).

0%2%4%6%12 am: too few checklists (1505) to judge1 am: too few checklists (675) to judge2 am: too few checklists (626) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1641) to judge4 am: too few checklists (3696) to judge5 am: too few checklists (14524) to judge6 am: 2.2% of 50677 checklists7 am: 3.7% of 125347 checklists8 am: 4.1% of 163668 checklists9 am: 3.5% of 160351 checklists10 am: 2.9% of 148940 checklists11 am: 2.5% of 124743 checklists12 pm: 2.1% of 112537 checklists1 pm: 2.0% of 98999 checklists2 pm: 2.0% of 94690 checklists3 pm: 1.8% of 87923 checklists4 pm: 1.7% of 75235 checklists5 pm: 1.3% of 54504 checklists6 pm: 1.0% of 40469 checklists7 pm: 0.6% of 33675 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (18715) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (5839) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (2704) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (1549) 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
January3.3%3.3%3.0%3.1%
February2.8%2.2%2.0%2.2%
March2.0%2.2%2.2%2.2%
April3.0%4.6%7.1%5.9%
May2.5%0.6%0.3%0.3%
June0.5%0.5%0.6%0.8%
July0.8%0.9%0.7%0.5%
August0.3%0.3%0.3%0.6%
September2.4%4.2%5.4%5.4%
October4.5%4.2%3.9%3.9%
November3.6%3.9%3.6%3.9%
December4.3%3.7%3.6%3.4%

Neighboring states

  • Washington: arrives late August, in the same week than Oregon
  • Idaho: arrives late May, 12 weeks earlier than Oregon
  • Nevada: arrives late August, in the same week than Oregon
  • California: arrives the second week of September, 2 weeks later than Oregon

Common questions

When do Lincoln's Sparrows arrive in Oregon?
Lincoln's Sparrows reach Oregon in late August, are common by early September, peak in mid April (5.9% of checklists), and most are gone by early May.
When do Lincoln's Sparrows leave Oregon?
Most Lincoln's Sparrows have left Oregon by early May, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until the second week of May.
When is the best time to see a Lincoln's Sparrow in Oregon?
The Lincoln's Sparrow is reported most often in mid April, on about 5.9% of Oregon checklists.
Where in Oregon are Lincoln's Sparrows seen most often?
By county, Columbia County, Harney County, and Deschutes County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Lincoln's Sparrow (counties with at least 200 checklists).