WhenToBird

Falco columbarius · Falconidae

When Do Merlins Arrive in Indiana?

Adult female Merlin
Photo: Cricket Raspet, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Merlins are winter birds in Indiana: they arrive in mid August, peak in early October (1.1% of checklists), and most are gone by late April.

When to look

First arrivalsAug 15-21mid August
Common byAug 15-21mid August
PeakOct 1-7early October
Most gone byApr 22-30late April

Best: early October. First arrivals mid August; most are gone by late April. Peak: on about 1.1% of Indiana checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Maruncommon
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Juluncommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novcommon
  12. Deccommon

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

0%0.5%1%1.5%Jan 1-7: 0.5% of 18123 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.6% of 12006 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.7% of 12403 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.7% of 16181 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.7% of 12546 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.4% of 14250 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.3% of 18077 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.3% of 13590 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.4% of 14545 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.3% of 14594 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.3% of 13894 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.3% of 22400 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.4% of 18069 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.4% of 19579 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.4% of 19518 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.3% of 30544 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.3% of 28430 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.2% of 30624 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.2% of 22920 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.1% of 21234 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.1% of 12279 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.1% of 10904 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.1% of 9488 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.3% of 11362 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.2% of 9947 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.2% of 9585 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.2% of 8929 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.2% of 12639 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.2% of 9528 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.2% of 9451 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.5% of 9442 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.4% of 14969 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.8% of 12628 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.8% of 11793 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.0% of 11396 checklistsSep 22-30: 1.1% of 14203 checklistsOct 1-7: 1.1% of 11365 checklistsOct 8-14: 1.2% of 12092 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.9% of 10440 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.7% of 13883 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.8% of 10476 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.6% of 9776 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.6% of 9035 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.7% of 12547 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.7% of 9078 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.5% of 8732 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.8% of 11024 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.6% of 15432 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 Indiana 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 Indiana

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Tipton CountyBest early December · 10 checklists that week, 344 in all33%
  2. Benton CountyBest late January · 11 checklists that week, 993 in all7.7%
  3. Pulaski CountyBest mid September · 10 checklists that week, 1,160 in all7.4%
  4. Madison CountyBest the second week of August · 192 checklists that week, 13,455 in all6.3%
  5. Scott CountyBest early October · 13 checklists that week, 798 in all6.1%
  6. Greene CountyBest mid January · 198 checklists that week, 17,518 in all5.7%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Indiana Dunes State ParkPorter County, best the second week of April · 81 checklists that week, 1,729 in all28%
  2. Shanklin ParkElkhart County, best the second week of October · 30 checklists that week, 1,504 in all17%
  3. Cowles BogPorter County, best late October · 65 checklists that week, 2,662 in all15%
  4. Marquette Park (east)Lake County, best the second week of October · 65 checklists that week, 1,400 in all14%
  5. Vaughn HollowBrown County, best early October · 25 checklists that week, 919 in all13%
  6. Greene-Sullivan State ForestSullivan County, best late December · 20 checklists that week, 272 in all11%

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

Best time of day

In Indiana, the Merlin is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (0.7% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%12 am: too few checklists (240) to judge1 am: too few checklists (231) to judge2 am: too few checklists (222) to judge3 am: too few checklists (202) to judge4 am: too few checklists (674) to judge5 am: too few checklists (4329) to judge6 am: 0.8% of 20589 checklists7 am: 0.6% of 58470 checklists8 am: 0.5% of 86931 checklists9 am: 0.4% of 78239 checklists10 am: 0.4% of 66080 checklists11 am: 0.4% of 54904 checklists12 pm: 0.3% of 47610 checklists1 pm: 0.4% of 44814 checklists2 pm: 0.4% of 43790 checklists3 pm: 0.5% of 42983 checklists4 pm: 0.5% of 45349 checklists5 pm: 0.5% of 35993 checklists6 pm: 0.3% of 26447 checklists7 pm: 0.3% of 17740 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (7603) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1721) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (517) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (272) 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
January0.5%0.6%0.7%0.7%
February0.7%0.4%0.3%0.3%
March0.4%0.3%0.3%0.3%
April0.4%0.4%0.4%0.3%
May0.3%0.2%0.2%0.1%
June0.1%0.1%0.1%0.3%
July0.2%0.2%0.2%0.2%
August0.2%0.2%0.5%0.4%
September0.8%0.8%1.0%1.1%
October1.1%1.2%0.9%0.7%
November0.8%0.6%0.6%0.7%
December0.7%0.5%0.8%0.6%

Neighboring states

  • Illinois: arrives late August, 1 week later than Indiana
  • Kentucky: arrives mid September, 4 weeks later than Indiana
  • Ohio: arrives mid August, in the same week than Indiana
  • Michigan: arrives late March, 19 weeks earlier than Indiana

Common questions

When do Merlins arrive in Indiana?
Merlins are winter birds in Indiana: they arrive in mid August, peak in early October (1.1% of checklists), and most are gone by late April.
When do Merlins leave Indiana?
Most Merlins have left Indiana by late April, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Merlin in Indiana?
The Merlin is reported most often in early October, on about 1.1% of Indiana checklists.
Where in Indiana are Merlins seen most often?
By county, Tipton County, Benton County, and Pulaski County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Merlin (counties with at least 200 checklists).