WhenToBird

Egretta caerulea · Ardeidae

When Do Little Blue Herons Arrive in Georgia?

Adult Little Blue Heron
Photo: Luis G Restrepo, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Little Blue Herons reach Georgia in late February, are common by mid May, peak in early August (12% of checklists), and most are gone by mid October.

When to look

First arrivalsFeb 22-28late February
Common byMay 15-21mid May
PeakAug 1-7early August
Most gone byOct 15-21mid October

Best: early August. First arrivals late February; most are gone by mid October. Peak: on about 12% of Georgia checklists.

  1. Januncommon
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Maruncommon
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octuncommon
  11. Novuncommon
  12. Decuncommon

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

0%5%10%15%Jan 1-7: 2.8% of 22238 checklistsJan 8-14: 2.9% of 16390 checklistsJan 15-21: 2.8% of 16779 checklistsJan 22-31: 2.2% of 22964 checklistsFeb 1-7: 2.2% of 16870 checklistsFeb 8-14: 1.9% of 19486 checklistsFeb 15-21: 1.8% of 28540 checklistsFeb 22-28: 2.4% of 17005 checklistsMar 1-7: 2.9% of 15920 checklistsMar 8-14: 2.9% of 16274 checklistsMar 15-21: 2.7% of 16432 checklistsMar 22-31: 3.2% of 25318 checklistsApr 1-7: 2.8% of 19292 checklistsApr 8-14: 2.6% of 19742 checklistsApr 15-21: 2.7% of 21498 checklistsApr 22-30: 3.2% of 29736 checklistsMay 1-7: 2.9% of 20858 checklistsMay 8-14: 3.0% of 20346 checklistsMay 15-21: 3.0% of 15859 checklistsMay 22-31: 3.5% of 19867 checklistsJun 1-7: 4.2% of 13467 checklistsJun 8-14: 3.8% of 12812 checklistsJun 15-21: 4.6% of 11379 checklistsJun 22-30: 6.6% of 14121 checklistsJul 1-7: 8.1% of 11176 checklistsJul 8-14: 8.5% of 10695 checklistsJul 15-21: 10% of 10655 checklistsJul 22-31: 11% of 15106 checklistsAug 1-7: 12% of 10650 checklistsAug 8-14: 11% of 10247 checklistsAug 15-21: 10% of 10371 checklistsAug 22-31: 9.4% of 15203 checklistsSep 1-7: 7.2% of 13007 checklistsSep 8-14: 5.2% of 12541 checklistsSep 15-21: 4.8% of 12943 checklistsSep 22-30: 4.1% of 17655 checklistsOct 1-7: 3.9% of 14646 checklistsOct 8-14: 4.6% of 15836 checklistsOct 15-21: 3.4% of 13124 checklistsOct 22-31: 2.5% of 15859 checklistsNov 1-7: 2.3% of 11711 checklistsNov 8-14: 2.8% of 11587 checklistsNov 15-21: 2.4% of 12025 checklistsNov 22-30: 2.5% of 16431 checklistsDec 1-7: 2.1% of 11256 checklistsDec 8-14: 2.4% of 11967 checklistsDec 15-21: 2.8% of 15618 checklistsDec 22-31: 2.6% of 22453 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 Georgia 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 Georgia

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Miller CountyBest mid July · 10 checklists that week, 908 in all81%
  2. McDuffie CountyBest early August · 23 checklists that week, 958 in all74%
  3. Jeff Davis CountyBest the second week of September · 11 checklists that week, 627 in all61%
  4. Mitchell CountyBest late July · 13 checklists that week, 428 in all57%
  5. Dooly CountyBest late July · 63 checklists that week, 1,911 in all54%
  6. Jenkins CountyBest late July · 12 checklists that week, 526 in all53%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Glynn County GreenspaceGlynn County, best late August · 20 checklists that week, 489 in all93%
  2. Chicopee WoodsHall County, best late July · 28 checklists that week, 548 in all92%
  3. Ocmulgee Mounds National Historical ParkBibb County, best late July · 30 checklists that week, 1,473 in all89%

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

Best time of day

In Georgia, the Little Blue Heron is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (4.4% of those checklists).

0%2%4%6%12 am: too few checklists (334) to judge1 am: too few checklists (277) to judge2 am: too few checklists (264) to judge3 am: too few checklists (282) to judge4 am: too few checklists (463) to judge5 am: too few checklists (1513) to judge6 am: 5.0% of 16790 checklists7 am: 4.3% of 73569 checklists8 am: 3.8% of 104956 checklists9 am: 4.1% of 96241 checklists10 am: 4.2% of 81903 checklists11 am: 3.9% of 66236 checklists12 pm: 4.0% of 56159 checklists1 pm: 4.1% of 48260 checklists2 pm: 4.3% of 46435 checklists3 pm: 4.2% of 46015 checklists4 pm: 3.5% of 47438 checklists5 pm: 3.4% of 38866 checklists6 pm: 3.9% of 26032 checklists7 pm: 4.0% of 16610 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (5490) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (995) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (517) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (310) 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
January2.8%2.9%2.8%2.2%
February2.2%1.9%1.8%2.4%
March2.9%2.9%2.7%3.2%
April2.8%2.6%2.7%3.2%
May2.9%3.0%3.0%3.5%
June4.2%3.8%4.6%6.6%
July8.1%8.5%10%11%
August12%11%10%9.4%
September7.2%5.2%4.8%4.1%
October3.9%4.6%3.4%2.5%
November2.3%2.8%2.4%2.5%
December2.1%2.4%2.8%2.6%

Neighboring states

  • South Carolina: arrives late June, 16 weeks later than Georgia
  • Alabama: arrives the second week of March, 2 weeks later than Georgia
  • Tennessee: arrives late June, 16 weeks later than Georgia
  • North Carolina: arrives early June, 13 weeks later than Georgia

Common questions

When do Little Blue Herons arrive in Georgia?
Little Blue Herons reach Georgia in late February, are common by mid May, peak in early August (12% of checklists), and most are gone by mid October.
When do Little Blue Herons leave Georgia?
Most Little Blue Herons have left Georgia by mid October, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until late January.
When is the best time to see a Little Blue Heron in Georgia?
The Little Blue Heron is reported most often in early August, on about 12% of Georgia checklists.
Where in Georgia are Little Blue Herons seen most often?
By county, Miller County, McDuffie County, and Jeff Davis County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Little Blue Heron (counties with at least 200 checklists).