WhenToBird

Egretta caerulea · Ardeidae

When Do Little Blue Herons Arrive in Virginia?

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

Little Blue Herons arrive in Virginia in early July, peak in late July (3.0% of checklists), and most are gone by early October.

When to look

First arrivalsJul 1-7early July
Common byJul 1-7early July
PeakJul 22-31late July
Most gone byOct 1-7early October

Best: late July. First arrivals early July; most are gone by early October. Peak: on about 3.0% of Virginia checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marrare
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octuncommon
  11. Novrare
  12. Decrare

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

0%1%2%3%4%Jan 1-7: 0.1% of 32817 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.1% of 25111 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.1% of 25510 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.1% of 34492 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.1% of 24950 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.1% of 28224 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.1% of 43578 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.1% of 26467 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.1% of 25851 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.1% of 25901 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.1% of 26747 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.1% of 40819 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.4% of 31351 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.6% of 33239 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.7% of 37284 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.7% of 54364 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.8% of 47698 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.7% of 46174 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.9% of 36444 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.8% of 43203 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.5% of 28503 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.6% of 25485 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.6% of 23728 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.7% of 28785 checklistsJul 1-7: 1.4% of 22294 checklistsJul 8-14: 1.7% of 20481 checklistsJul 15-21: 3.0% of 18914 checklistsJul 22-31: 3.1% of 26976 checklistsAug 1-7: 2.9% of 19555 checklistsAug 8-14: 2.8% of 18744 checklistsAug 15-21: 2.5% of 18721 checklistsAug 22-31: 2.5% of 28763 checklistsSep 1-7: 2.3% of 23594 checklistsSep 8-14: 2.4% of 22581 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.7% of 23036 checklistsSep 22-30: 1.5% of 29687 checklistsOct 1-7: 1.1% of 24321 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.6% of 23946 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.5% of 22191 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.5% of 30161 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.4% of 21431 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.3% of 22758 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.2% of 19988 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.2% of 27665 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.2% of 19324 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.1% of 20316 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.1% of 25675 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.1% of 38677 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 Virginia 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 Virginia

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Surry CountyBest mid August · 54 checklists that week, 2,669 in all29%
  2. Accomack CountyBest the second week of July · 556 checklists that week, 43,278 in all24%
  3. Charles CityBest late July · 43 checklists that week, 2,357 in all23%
  4. Mecklenburg CountyBest the second week of August · 138 checklists that week, 8,544 in all15%
  5. Martinsville CountyBest early August · 33 checklists that week, 1,842 in all13%
  6. Orange CountyBest mid August · 62 checklists that week, 4,307 in all12%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Princess Anne Wildlife Management AreaVirginia Beach County, best early August · 26 checklists that week, 878 in all76%
  2. Little Toms Cove (northwest)Accomack County, best mid July · 56 checklists that week, 1,972 in all70%
  3. Princess Anne Wildlife Management Area (north)Virginia Beach County, best late May · 27 checklists that week, 697 in all70%
  4. Dick Cross Wildlife Management AreaMecklenburg County, best mid August · 23 checklists that week, 471 in all65%
  5. Malvern HillHenrico County, best late August · 21 checklists that week, 328 in all64%
  6. Mountain View ParkRockingham County, best early October · 37 checklists that week, 187 in all60%

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

Best time of day

In Virginia, the Little Blue Heron is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (1.1% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%1.5%2%12 am: too few checklists (485) to judge1 am: too few checklists (488) to judge2 am: too few checklists (423) to judge3 am: too few checklists (565) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1410) to judge5 am: too few checklists (10265) to judge6 am: 1.5% of 64788 checklists7 am: 0.9% of 169128 checklists8 am: 0.7% of 180748 checklists9 am: 0.7% of 153462 checklists10 am: 0.7% of 128966 checklists11 am: 0.7% of 104204 checklists12 pm: 0.6% of 91604 checklists1 pm: 0.7% of 85547 checklists2 pm: 0.7% of 82355 checklists3 pm: 0.8% of 82265 checklists4 pm: 0.8% of 76714 checklists5 pm: 0.9% of 56782 checklists6 pm: 0.9% of 40131 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (24290) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (7744) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2383) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1122) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (651) 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%0.1%0.1%0.1%
February0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
March0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
April0.4%0.6%0.7%0.7%
May0.8%0.7%0.9%0.8%
June0.5%0.6%0.6%0.7%
July1.4%1.7%3.0%3.1%
August2.9%2.8%2.5%2.5%
September2.3%2.4%1.7%1.5%
October1.1%0.6%0.5%0.5%
November0.4%0.3%0.2%0.2%
December0.2%0.1%0.1%0.1%

Neighboring states

  • Maryland: arrives the second week of July, 1 week later than Virginia
  • Delaware: arrives early April, 12 weeks earlier than Virginia
  • North Carolina: arrives early June, 4 weeks earlier than Virginia
  • Pennsylvania: arrives mid July, 2 weeks later than Virginia

Common questions

When do Little Blue Herons arrive in Virginia?
Little Blue Herons arrive in Virginia in early July, peak in late July (3.0% of checklists), and most are gone by early October.
When do Little Blue Herons leave Virginia?
Most Little Blue Herons have left Virginia by early October, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Little Blue Heron in Virginia?
The Little Blue Heron is reported most often in late July, on about 3.0% of Virginia checklists.
Where in Virginia are Little Blue Herons seen most often?
By county, Surry County, Accomack County, and Charles City have the highest peak reporting rates for the Little Blue Heron (counties with at least 200 checklists).