WhenToBird

Anas platyrhynchos · Anatidae

When Do Mallards Arrive in Oregon?

Adult male Mallard
Photo: euqirneto, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

The Mallard is in Oregon all year. It turns up on about 38% of checklists at its peak (early April) and on 16% in its quietest week (late June).

When to look

PresentAll year
Peak weekApr 1-7early April
Quietest weekJun 22-30late June

Best: early April. Here all year. Peak: on about 38% of Oregon checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Deccommon

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

0%10%20%30%40%Jan 1-7: 30% of 34973 checklistsJan 8-14: 29% of 26807 checklistsJan 15-21: 30% of 26567 checklistsJan 22-31: 32% of 36019 checklistsFeb 1-7: 32% of 24020 checklistsFeb 8-14: 29% of 25765 checklistsFeb 15-21: 30% of 31019 checklistsFeb 22-28: 33% of 24582 checklistsMar 1-7: 35% of 24834 checklistsMar 8-14: 37% of 24642 checklistsMar 15-21: 37% of 27420 checklistsMar 22-31: 38% of 39913 checklistsApr 1-7: 39% of 28817 checklistsApr 8-14: 37% of 31221 checklistsApr 15-21: 36% of 34402 checklistsApr 22-30: 35% of 47144 checklistsMay 1-7: 34% of 37716 checklistsMay 8-14: 33% of 39651 checklistsMay 15-21: 31% of 37496 checklistsMay 22-31: 26% of 56967 checklistsJun 1-7: 22% of 35893 checklistsJun 8-14: 19% of 31880 checklistsJun 15-21: 17% of 30942 checklistsJun 22-30: 15% of 38478 checklistsJul 1-7: 17% of 27409 checklistsJul 8-14: 18% of 25161 checklistsJul 15-21: 19% of 25473 checklistsJul 22-31: 20% of 33920 checklistsAug 1-7: 22% of 24310 checklistsAug 8-14: 23% of 23675 checklistsAug 15-21: 26% of 23623 checklistsAug 22-31: 27% of 33762 checklistsSep 1-7: 28% of 25120 checklistsSep 8-14: 26% of 24458 checklistsSep 15-21: 28% of 25528 checklistsSep 22-30: 28% of 31631 checklistsOct 1-7: 27% of 25498 checklistsOct 8-14: 27% of 25161 checklistsOct 15-21: 28% of 23701 checklistsOct 22-31: 30% of 30996 checklistsNov 1-7: 30% of 21089 checklistsNov 8-14: 31% of 21880 checklistsNov 15-21: 29% of 21501 checklistsNov 22-30: 29% of 28930 checklistsDec 1-7: 29% of 19807 checklistsDec 8-14: 27% of 21022 checklistsDec 15-21: 26% of 24817 checklistsDec 22-31: 27% 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.

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Where in Oregon

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Gilliam CountyBest early January · 24 checklists that week, 2,323 in all71%
  2. Morrow CountyBest the second week of December · 34 checklists that week, 3,484 in all65%
  3. Crook CountyBest late March · 256 checklists that week, 9,466 in all58%
  4. Washington CountyBest late March · 3230 checklists that week, 110,376 in all54%
  5. Hood River CountyBest early November · 144 checklists that week, 9,695 in all54%
  6. Sherman CountyBest late November · 95 checklists that week, 4,629 in all52%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Wetland ParkLane County, best mid November · 25 checklists that week, 897 in all100%
  2. Heron Lakes Golf CourseMultnomah County, best the second week of July · 28 checklists that week, 4,567 in all100%
  3. Beaverton Creek Wetlands ParkWashington County, best late March · 21 checklists that week, 476 in all100%
  4. City GreenspaceWashington County, best early September · 20 checklists that week, 774 in all100%
  5. First Street Rapids ParkDeschutes County, best early March · 21 checklists that week, 874 in all100%
  6. Jennings LodgeClackamas County, best the second week of January · 20 checklists that week, 527 in all100%

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

Best time of day

In Oregon, the Mallard is most often listed on checklists started between 9 and 11 am (31% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%40%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: 25% of 50677 checklists7 am: 29% of 125347 checklists8 am: 30% of 163668 checklists9 am: 31% of 160351 checklists10 am: 30% of 148940 checklists11 am: 30% of 124743 checklists12 pm: 29% of 112537 checklists1 pm: 30% of 98999 checklists2 pm: 31% of 94690 checklists3 pm: 31% of 87923 checklists4 pm: 28% of 75235 checklists5 pm: 27% of 54504 checklists6 pm: 24% of 40469 checklists7 pm: 19% 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
January30%29%30%32%
February32%29%30%33%
March35%37%37%38%
April39%37%36%35%
May34%33%31%26%
June22%19%17%15%
July17%18%19%20%
August22%23%26%27%
September28%26%28%28%
October27%27%28%30%
November30%31%29%29%
December29%27%26%27%

Neighboring states

  • Washington: year-round, peaks mid March
  • Idaho: all year, most in winter, peaks early April
  • Nevada: year-round, peaks the second week of January
  • California: year-round, peaks mid March

Common questions

When do Mallards arrive in Oregon?
The Mallard is in Oregon all year. It turns up on about 38% of checklists at its peak (early April) and on 16% in its quietest week (late June).
When do Mallards leave Oregon?
The Mallard does not leave Oregon: it is reported all year, from 16% of checklists in late June to 38% in early April.
When is the best time to see a Mallard in Oregon?
The Mallard is reported most often in early April, on about 38% of Oregon checklists.
Where in Oregon are Mallards seen most often?
By county, Gilliam County, Morrow County, and Crook County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Mallard (counties with at least 200 checklists).