WhenToBird

Zenaida macroura · Columbidae

When Do Mourning Doves Arrive in Oregon?

Adult male Mourning Dove
Photo: Texas Bird Family, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Mourning Doves are in Oregon all year, but most are here in summer: numbers build from early April, peak in mid May (23% of checklists), and fall back by late August. In the quietest week (late October) they are still on about 8.7% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildApr 1-7early April
PeakMay 15-21mid May
Fall back byAug 22-31late August
FewestOct 22-31late October

Best: mid May. Here all year; numbers build from early April and fall back by late August. Peak: on about 23% of Oregon checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novcommon
  12. Deccommon

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

0%10%20%30%Jan 1-7: 10% of 34973 checklistsJan 8-14: 9.7% of 26807 checklistsJan 15-21: 8.8% of 26567 checklistsJan 22-31: 8.8% of 36019 checklistsFeb 1-7: 8.7% of 24020 checklistsFeb 8-14: 9.6% of 25765 checklistsFeb 15-21: 10% of 31019 checklistsFeb 22-28: 11% of 24582 checklistsMar 1-7: 12% of 24834 checklistsMar 8-14: 13% of 24642 checklistsMar 15-21: 15% of 27420 checklistsMar 22-31: 15% of 39913 checklistsApr 1-7: 17% of 28817 checklistsApr 8-14: 17% of 31221 checklistsApr 15-21: 18% of 34402 checklistsApr 22-30: 20% of 47144 checklistsMay 1-7: 22% of 37716 checklistsMay 8-14: 23% of 39651 checklistsMay 15-21: 23% of 37496 checklistsMay 22-31: 22% of 56967 checklistsJun 1-7: 22% of 35893 checklistsJun 8-14: 21% of 31880 checklistsJun 15-21: 20% of 30942 checklistsJun 22-30: 19% of 38478 checklistsJul 1-7: 20% of 27409 checklistsJul 8-14: 20% of 25161 checklistsJul 15-21: 20% of 25473 checklistsJul 22-31: 19% of 33920 checklistsAug 1-7: 19% of 24310 checklistsAug 8-14: 19% of 23675 checklistsAug 15-21: 19% of 23623 checklistsAug 22-31: 17% of 33762 checklistsSep 1-7: 16% of 25120 checklistsSep 8-14: 14% of 24458 checklistsSep 15-21: 12% of 25528 checklistsSep 22-30: 11% of 31631 checklistsOct 1-7: 9.2% of 25498 checklistsOct 8-14: 8.9% of 25161 checklistsOct 15-21: 8.3% of 23701 checklistsOct 22-31: 8.8% of 30996 checklistsNov 1-7: 8.9% of 21089 checklistsNov 8-14: 9.2% of 21880 checklistsNov 15-21: 9.4% of 21501 checklistsNov 22-30: 9.6% of 28930 checklistsDec 1-7: 10% of 19807 checklistsDec 8-14: 11% of 21022 checklistsDec 15-21: 11% of 24817 checklistsDec 22-31: 10% 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. Columbia CountyBest early July · 337 checklists that week, 27,750 in all57%
  2. Malheur CountyBest mid July · 41 checklists that week, 4,699 in all48%
  3. Umatilla CountyBest late August · 367 checklists that week, 17,651 in all44%
  4. Jackson CountyBest the second week of August · 804 checklists that week, 60,428 in all40%
  5. Gilliam CountyBest mid June · 121 checklists that week, 2,323 in all40%
  6. Deschutes CountyBest early May · 2356 checklists that week, 86,260 in all39%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Sawyer ParkDeschutes County, best early May · 123 checklists that week, 1,775 in all90%
  2. River Island Natural AreaClackamas County, best the second week of May · 32 checklists that week, 770 in all88%
  3. Thief Valley ReservoirUnion County, best late July · 33 checklists that week, 813 in all88%
  4. Mount Pisgah Park (Derr Pond)Lane County, best mid May · 50 checklists that week, 671 in all83%

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

Best time of day

In Oregon, the Mourning Dove is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (25% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%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: 27% of 50677 checklists7 am: 24% of 125347 checklists8 am: 21% of 163668 checklists9 am: 18% of 160351 checklists10 am: 14% of 148940 checklists11 am: 11% of 124743 checklists12 pm: 11% of 112537 checklists1 pm: 9.2% of 98999 checklists2 pm: 9.6% of 94690 checklists3 pm: 11% of 87923 checklists4 pm: 12% of 75235 checklists5 pm: 14% of 54504 checklists6 pm: 16% of 40469 checklists7 pm: 13% 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
January10%9.7%8.8%8.8%
February8.7%9.6%10%11%
March12%13%15%15%
April17%17%18%20%
May22%23%23%22%
June22%21%20%19%
July20%20%20%19%
August19%19%19%17%
September16%14%12%11%
October9.2%8.9%8.3%8.8%
November8.9%9.2%9.4%9.6%
December10%11%11%10%

Neighboring states

  • Washington: arrives mid April, 2 weeks later than Oregon
  • Idaho: arrives late April, 3 weeks later than Oregon
  • Nevada: year-round, peaks the second week of May
  • California: year-round, peaks the second week of May

Common questions

When do Mourning Doves arrive in Oregon?
Mourning Doves are in Oregon all year, but most are here in summer: numbers build from early April, peak in mid May (23% of checklists), and fall back by late August. In the quietest week (late October) they are still on about 8.7% of checklists.
When do Mourning Doves leave Oregon?
Mourning Doves never fully leave Oregon: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by late August, but some are still reported in every week, about 8.7% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Mourning Dove in Oregon?
The Mourning Dove is reported most often in mid May, on about 23% of Oregon checklists.
Where in Oregon are Mourning Doves seen most often?
By county, Columbia County, Malheur County, and Umatilla County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Mourning Dove (counties with at least 200 checklists).