WhenToBird

Egretta caerulea · Ardeidae

When Do Little Blue Herons Arrive in Texas?

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

Little Blue Herons are in Texas all year, but most are here in summer: numbers build from late June, peak in the second week of August (11% of checklists), and fall back by early October. In the quietest week (the second week of February) they are still on about 3.7% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildJun 22-30late June
PeakAug 8-14the second week of August
Fall back byOct 1-7early October
FewestFeb 8-14the second week of February

Best: the second week of August. Here all year; numbers build from late June and fall back by early October. Peak: on about 11% of Texas checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maycommon
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novcommon
  12. Deccommon

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

0%5%10%15%Jan 1-7: 4.3% of 66038 checklistsJan 8-14: 4.2% of 52445 checklistsJan 15-21: 3.8% of 52985 checklistsJan 22-31: 4.2% of 71020 checklistsFeb 1-7: 4.0% of 52306 checklistsFeb 8-14: 3.8% of 55887 checklistsFeb 15-21: 3.3% of 69016 checklistsFeb 22-28: 4.5% of 52998 checklistsMar 1-7: 4.8% of 50836 checklistsMar 8-14: 4.9% of 51749 checklistsMar 15-21: 5.4% of 53731 checklistsMar 22-31: 7.0% of 82049 checklistsApr 1-7: 7.7% of 65854 checklistsApr 8-14: 8.0% of 78434 checklistsApr 15-21: 8.6% of 92302 checklistsApr 22-30: 7.4% of 122878 checklistsMay 1-7: 6.2% of 74592 checklistsMay 8-14: 6.0% of 61008 checklistsMay 15-21: 5.9% of 43365 checklistsMay 22-31: 5.8% of 52736 checklistsJun 1-7: 5.9% of 31643 checklistsJun 8-14: 6.4% of 30131 checklistsJun 15-21: 7.3% of 26802 checklistsJun 22-30: 7.4% of 32822 checklistsJul 1-7: 8.7% of 27213 checklistsJul 8-14: 8.7% of 24555 checklistsJul 15-21: 9.0% of 24146 checklistsJul 22-31: 10% of 34536 checklistsAug 1-7: 11% of 25764 checklistsAug 8-14: 11% of 26347 checklistsAug 15-21: 10% of 28431 checklistsAug 22-31: 9.9% of 42838 checklistsSep 1-7: 9.8% of 35070 checklistsSep 8-14: 8.8% of 33893 checklistsSep 15-21: 8.6% of 32572 checklistsSep 22-30: 7.8% of 43771 checklistsOct 1-7: 7.5% of 34143 checklistsOct 8-14: 6.5% of 37563 checklistsOct 15-21: 6.0% of 36263 checklistsOct 22-31: 5.6% of 49170 checklistsNov 1-7: 5.6% of 43301 checklistsNov 8-14: 5.9% of 48744 checklistsNov 15-21: 4.7% of 42213 checklistsNov 22-30: 4.3% of 54455 checklistsDec 1-7: 4.4% of 40166 checklistsDec 8-14: 4.1% of 41035 checklistsDec 15-21: 4.5% of 46983 checklistsDec 22-31: 4.3% 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. Freestone CountyBest late July · 25 checklists that week, 1,088 in all57%
  2. Navarro CountyBest early August · 13 checklists that week, 1,319 in all50%
  3. San Augustine CountyBest early October · 17 checklists that week, 745 in all50%
  4. Chambers CountyBest late July · 185 checklists that week, 23,046 in all44%
  5. Madison CountyBest mid August · 23 checklists that week, 890 in all41%
  6. Fort Bend CountyBest late August · 1196 checklists that week, 57,229 in all40%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Sheldon Lake State Park & Environmental Learning CenterHarris County, best early July · 31 checklists that week, 2,340 in all96%
  2. George Mitchell Nature PreserveHarris County, best the second week of August · 28 checklists that week, 1,641 in all96%
  3. Cullinan/Oyster CreekFort Bend County, best the second week of August · 83 checklists that week, 7,611 in all93%
  4. Murphy ParkWilliamson County, best late May · 20 checklists that week, 447 in all93%
  5. Shadow Creek Ranch Nature CenterBrazoria County, best late August · 26 checklists that week, 1,296 in all92%

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

Best time of day

In Texas, the Little Blue Heron is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (8.6% 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: 12% of 74687 checklists7 am: 7.9% of 285131 checklists8 am: 6.9% of 329960 checklists9 am: 6.0% of 267889 checklists10 am: 6.1% of 218205 checklists11 am: 5.8% of 178879 checklists12 pm: 5.6% of 153722 checklists1 pm: 5.8% of 144662 checklists2 pm: 5.7% of 138578 checklists3 pm: 5.3% of 136878 checklists4 pm: 5.4% of 137550 checklists5 pm: 4.9% of 113599 checklists6 pm: 5.7% of 81743 checklists7 pm: 4.8% 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
January4.3%4.2%3.8%4.2%
February4.0%3.8%3.3%4.5%
March4.8%4.9%5.4%7.0%
April7.7%8.0%8.6%7.4%
May6.2%6.0%5.9%5.8%
June5.9%6.4%7.3%7.4%
July8.7%8.7%9.0%10%
August11%11%10%9.9%
September9.8%8.8%8.6%7.8%
October7.5%6.5%6.0%5.6%
November5.6%5.9%4.7%4.3%
December4.4%4.1%4.5%4.3%

Neighboring states

  • Louisiana: arrives late March, 12 weeks earlier than Texas
  • Oklahoma: arrives the second week of April, 10 weeks earlier than Texas
  • Arkansas: arrives early May, 7 weeks earlier than Texas
  • Mississippi: arrives early March, 15 weeks earlier than Texas

Common questions

When do Little Blue Herons arrive in Texas?
Little Blue Herons are in Texas all year, but most are here in summer: numbers build from late June, peak in the second week of August (11% of checklists), and fall back by early October. In the quietest week (the second week of February) they are still on about 3.7% of checklists.
When do Little Blue Herons leave Texas?
Little Blue Herons never fully leave Texas: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by early October, but some are still reported in every week, about 3.7% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Little Blue Heron in Texas?
The Little Blue Heron is reported most often in the second week of August, on about 11% of Texas checklists.
Where in Texas are Little Blue Herons seen most often?
By county, Freestone County, Navarro County, and San Augustine County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Little Blue Heron (counties with at least 200 checklists).