WhenToBird

Cygnus olor · Anatidae

When Do Mute Swans Arrive in California?

Adult Mute Swan
Photo: Radu Teodoreanu, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

The Mute Swan is in California all year. It turns up on about 1.1% of checklists at its peak (the second week of January) and on 0.6% in its quietest week (the second week of June).

When to look

PresentAll year
Peak weekJan 8-14the second week of January
Quietest weekJun 8-14the second week of June

Best: the second week of January. Here all year. Peak: on about 1.1% of California checklists.

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

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

0%0.5%1%1.5%Jan 1-7: 1.2% of 112336 checklistsJan 8-14: 1.1% of 85518 checklistsJan 15-21: 1.1% of 86488 checklistsJan 22-31: 1.1% of 116174 checklistsFeb 1-7: 1.1% of 75171 checklistsFeb 8-14: 1.1% of 84467 checklistsFeb 15-21: 1.0% of 105683 checklistsFeb 22-28: 1.1% of 83396 checklistsMar 1-7: 1.1% of 77470 checklistsMar 8-14: 1.1% of 75180 checklistsMar 15-21: 1.1% of 80770 checklistsMar 22-31: 1.0% of 114116 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.8% of 84057 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.8% of 83692 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.7% of 89242 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.8% of 114289 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.8% of 85728 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.7% of 91984 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.8% of 75478 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.7% of 106250 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.6% of 70051 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.6% of 67485 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.6% of 66269 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.6% of 79172 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.8% of 62877 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.7% of 60328 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.7% of 59705 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.8% of 83796 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.8% of 60215 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.8% of 60172 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.8% of 59877 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.7% of 89107 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.8% of 72000 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.7% of 71228 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.7% of 76808 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.7% of 100204 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.7% of 76571 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.7% of 80874 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.8% of 74581 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.9% of 97498 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.9% of 70851 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.9% of 72431 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.9% of 66767 checklistsNov 22-30: 1.0% of 94737 checklistsDec 1-7: 1.0% of 65393 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.8% of 67449 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.7% of 83421 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.9% of 124993 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 California 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 California

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Napa CountyBest the second week of August · 283 checklists that week, 18,976 in all20%
  2. Sonoma CountyBest the second week of March · 2212 checklists that week, 113,105 in all10%
  3. Marin CountyBest early February · 2334 checklists that week, 135,728 in all9.7%
  4. Calaveras CountyBest mid January · 110 checklists that week, 6,843 in all9.6%
  5. Amador CountyBest the second week of February · 82 checklists that week, 4,733 in all6.7%
  6. El Dorado CountyBest early February · 256 checklists that week, 25,075 in all6.7%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Mather Regional ParkSacramento County, best early February · 36 checklists that week, 1,173 in all99%
  2. Wetlands Edge Trail HeadNapa County, best early July · 20 checklists that week, 1,367 in all98%
  3. Marin County Flood ControlMarin County, best the second week of October · 20 checklists that week, 553 in all89%
  4. Waterbird Regional PreserveContra Costa County, best the second week of June · 26 checklists that week, 1,740 in all87%
  5. Shollenberger ParkSonoma County, best late March · 109 checklists that week, 3,682 in all87%

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

Best time of day

In California, the Mute Swan is most often listed on checklists started between 2 and 4 pm (1.0% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%12 am: too few checklists (1688) to judge1 am: too few checklists (1451) to judge2 am: too few checklists (1402) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1743) to judge4 am: too few checklists (4647) to judge5 am: too few checklists (32158) to judge6 am: 0.7% of 186053 checklists7 am: 0.8% of 444086 checklists8 am: 0.9% of 535846 checklists9 am: 0.9% of 486061 checklists10 am: 0.9% of 411130 checklists11 am: 0.9% of 325798 checklists12 pm: 0.8% of 269132 checklists1 pm: 0.9% of 244762 checklists2 pm: 1.0% of 235420 checklists3 pm: 0.9% of 232365 checklists4 pm: 0.9% of 208688 checklists5 pm: 0.8% of 146104 checklists6 pm: 0.8% of 96867 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (50942) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (14803) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (5561) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (3546) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (2092) 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
January1.2%1.1%1.1%1.1%
February1.1%1.1%1.0%1.1%
March1.1%1.1%1.1%1.0%
April0.8%0.8%0.7%0.8%
May0.8%0.7%0.8%0.7%
June0.6%0.6%0.6%0.6%
July0.8%0.7%0.7%0.8%
August0.8%0.8%0.8%0.7%
September0.8%0.7%0.7%0.7%
October0.7%0.7%0.8%0.9%
November0.9%0.9%0.9%1.0%
December1.0%0.8%0.7%0.9%

Neighboring states

  • Utah: winter visitor, peaks late January
  • Illinois: winter visitor, peaks early March
  • Indiana: all year, most in winter, peaks early March
  • Kentucky: winter visitor, peaks late January

Common questions

When do Mute Swans arrive in California?
The Mute Swan is in California all year. It turns up on about 1.1% of checklists at its peak (the second week of January) and on 0.6% in its quietest week (the second week of June).
When do Mute Swans leave California?
The Mute Swan does not leave California: it is reported all year, from 0.6% of checklists in the second week of June to 1.1% in the second week of January.
When is the best time to see a Mute Swan in California?
The Mute Swan is reported most often in the second week of January, on about 1.1% of California checklists.
Where in California are Mute Swans seen most often?
By county, Napa County, Sonoma County, and Marin County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Mute Swan (counties with at least 200 checklists).