WhenToBird

Egretta caerulea · Ardeidae

When Do Little Blue Herons Arrive in Maine?

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

Little Blue Herons arrive in Maine in early July, peak in early August (1.3% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of September.

When to look

First arrivalsJul 1-7early July
Common byJul 1-7early July
PeakAug 1-7early August
Most gone bySep 8-14the second week of September

Best: early August. First arrivals early July; most are gone by the second week of September. Peak: on about 1.3% of Maine checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marnot usually seen
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octrare
  11. Novnot usually seen
  12. Decnot usually seen

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

0%0.5%1%1.5%Jan 1-7: 0.1% of 15499 checklistsJan 8-14: 0% of 11141 checklistsJan 15-21: 0% of 10729 checklistsJan 22-31: 0% of 15084 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0% of 9403 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0% of 11268 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0% of 14061 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0% of 9977 checklistsMar 1-7: 0% of 9649 checklistsMar 8-14: 0% of 11781 checklistsMar 15-21: 0% of 11613 checklistsMar 22-31: 0% of 17798 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.1% of 14638 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.3% of 16511 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.3% of 17164 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.2% of 22602 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.3% of 22556 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.1% of 27842 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.2% of 27748 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.2% of 38715 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.4% of 26916 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.2% of 23737 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.2% of 22733 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.3% of 28248 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.5% of 20290 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.7% of 18534 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.8% of 17319 checklistsJul 22-31: 1.2% of 22815 checklistsAug 1-7: 1.4% of 15004 checklistsAug 8-14: 1.3% of 14603 checklistsAug 15-21: 1.1% of 14972 checklistsAug 22-31: 1.1% of 19813 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.9% of 14567 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.4% of 14520 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.3% of 14339 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.1% of 16879 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.1% of 12959 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.1% of 13168 checklistsOct 15-21: 0% of 11184 checklistsOct 22-31: 0% of 13717 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.1% of 9823 checklistsNov 8-14: 0% of 9007 checklistsNov 15-21: 0% of 8528 checklistsNov 22-30: 0% of 10228 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.1% of 7505 checklistsDec 8-14: 0% of 7982 checklistsDec 15-21: 0% of 10455 checklistsDec 22-31: 0% 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. Cumberland CountyBest early August · 2681 checklists that week, 169,501 in all5.1%
  2. Knox CountyBest early September · 836 checklists that week, 34,453 in all4.0%
  3. Sagadahoc CountyBest the second week of April · 432 checklists that week, 21,736 in all1.3%
  4. Androscoggin CountyBest early August · 234 checklists that week, 16,955 in all1.2%
  5. York CountyBest early August · 1829 checklists that week, 101,844 in all1.2%
  6. Penobscot CountyBest the second week of August · 826 checklists that week, 56,895 in all1.2%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Scarborough Marsh Wildlife Management Area (northeast)Cumberland County, best late July · 43 checklists that week, 719 in all57%
  2. Scarborough Marsh Wildlife Management AreaCumberland County, best late July · 262 checklists that week, 4,768 in all42%
  3. Scarborough Marsh Wildlife Management Area (Grand Beach)Cumberland County, best early August · 94 checklists that week, 2,379 in all24%
  4. R. Waldo Tyler Wildlife Management AreaKnox County, best early September · 133 checklists that week, 3,511 in all21%
  5. Rachel Carson National Wildlife RefugeCumberland County, best late May · 43 checklists that week, 946 in all20%
  6. Scarborough Marsh Wildlife Management Area (Blue Point Hill)Cumberland County, best early July · 23 checklists that week, 302 in all20%

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

Best time of day

In Maine, the Little Blue Heron is most often listed on checklists started between 4 and 6 pm (0.4% of those checklists).

0%0.5%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: 0.3% of 19895 checklists6 am: 0.3% of 54578 checklists7 am: 0.3% of 92775 checklists8 am: 0.3% of 86962 checklists9 am: 0.3% of 78989 checklists10 am: 0.3% of 70954 checklists11 am: 0.3% of 59331 checklists12 pm: 0.3% of 50943 checklists1 pm: 0.3% of 49775 checklists2 pm: 0.3% of 49001 checklists3 pm: 0.4% of 43252 checklists4 pm: 0.4% of 33413 checklists5 pm: 0.4% of 25547 checklists6 pm: 0.4% 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
January0.1%0%0%0%
February0%0%0%0%
March0%0%0%0%
April0.1%0.3%0.3%0.2%
May0.3%0.1%0.2%0.2%
June0.4%0.2%0.2%0.3%
July0.5%0.7%0.8%1.2%
August1.4%1.3%1.1%1.1%
September0.9%0.4%0.3%0.1%
October0.1%0.1%0%0%
November0.1%0%0%0%
December0.1%0%0%0%

Neighboring states

  • Massachusetts: arrives mid June, 2 weeks earlier than Maine
  • Rhode Island: arrives early June, 4 weeks earlier than Maine
  • Connecticut: arrives mid April, 10 weeks earlier than Maine
  • New York: arrives mid May, 6 weeks earlier than Maine

Common questions

When do Little Blue Herons arrive in Maine?
Little Blue Herons arrive in Maine in early July, peak in early August (1.3% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of September.
When do Little Blue Herons leave Maine?
Most Little Blue Herons have left Maine by the second week of September, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Little Blue Heron in Maine?
The Little Blue Heron is reported most often in early August, on about 1.3% of Maine checklists.
Where in Maine are Little Blue Herons seen most often?
By county, Cumberland County, Knox County, and Sagadahoc County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Little Blue Heron (counties with at least 200 checklists).