WhenToBird

Cardinalis cardinalis · Cardinalidae

When Do Northern Cardinals Arrive in New Hampshire?

Adult male Northern Cardinal
Photo: Michael, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

The Northern Cardinal is in New Hampshire all year. It turns up on about 47% of checklists at its peak (early May) and on 24% in its quietest week (early September).

When to look

PresentAll year
Peak weekMay 1-7early May
Quietest weekSep 1-7early September

Best: early May. Here all year. Peak: on about 47% of New Hampshire checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novcommon
  12. Deccommon

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

0%20%40%60%Jan 1-7: 30% of 8253 checklistsJan 8-14: 30% of 5998 checklistsJan 15-21: 33% of 5734 checklistsJan 22-31: 32% of 7776 checklistsFeb 1-7: 35% of 5253 checklistsFeb 8-14: 35% of 6802 checklistsFeb 15-21: 38% of 8852 checklistsFeb 22-28: 38% of 5792 checklistsMar 1-7: 36% of 6187 checklistsMar 8-14: 38% of 6977 checklistsMar 15-21: 39% of 7863 checklistsMar 22-31: 40% of 11746 checklistsApr 1-7: 38% of 9329 checklistsApr 8-14: 42% of 10499 checklistsApr 15-21: 45% of 10376 checklistsApr 22-30: 47% of 13086 checklistsMay 1-7: 48% of 13198 checklistsMay 8-14: 47% of 14980 checklistsMay 15-21: 43% of 12487 checklistsMay 22-31: 36% of 14294 checklistsJun 1-7: 31% of 8974 checklistsJun 8-14: 30% of 8395 checklistsJun 15-21: 30% of 7670 checklistsJun 22-30: 30% of 9188 checklistsJul 1-7: 32% of 7707 checklistsJul 8-14: 31% of 6554 checklistsJul 15-21: 30% of 6636 checklistsJul 22-31: 29% of 9599 checklistsAug 1-7: 31% of 6436 checklistsAug 8-14: 29% of 6477 checklistsAug 15-21: 25% of 6510 checklistsAug 22-31: 23% of 9762 checklistsSep 1-7: 24% of 6700 checklistsSep 8-14: 25% of 6012 checklistsSep 15-21: 23% of 6238 checklistsSep 22-30: 26% of 7619 checklistsOct 1-7: 27% of 6702 checklistsOct 8-14: 26% of 6863 checklistsOct 15-21: 29% of 6284 checklistsOct 22-31: 31% of 8287 checklistsNov 1-7: 28% of 7584 checklistsNov 8-14: 28% of 6056 checklistsNov 15-21: 28% of 5597 checklistsNov 22-30: 30% of 7140 checklistsDec 1-7: 34% of 4623 checklistsDec 8-14: 32% of 4920 checklistsDec 15-21: 32% of 6416 checklistsDec 22-31: 33% of 7659 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 New Hampshire 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 New Hampshire

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Strafford CountyBest the second week of May · 1595 checklists that week, 41,888 in all62%
  2. Hillsborough CountyBest early May · 1921 checklists that week, 50,125 in all60%
  3. Merrimack CountyBest late April · 1386 checklists that week, 36,980 in all55%
  4. Rockingham CountyBest early May · 2815 checklists that week, 84,864 in all55%
  5. Cheshire CountyBest early May · 1289 checklists that week, 39,834 in all50%
  6. Belknap CountyBest the second week of May · 505 checklists that week, 13,295 in all44%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Tioga River ReservoirBelknap County, best mid May · 21 checklists that week, 152 in all100%
  2. Cammett FieldsRockingham County, best late April · 25 checklists that week, 296 in all100%
  3. Father Lawless Fields Town ParkStrafford County, best late April · 70 checklists that week, 1,274 in all95%
  4. Cocheco River Reservoir (Dover)Strafford County, best mid May · 20 checklists that week, 473 in all94%
  5. Benson ParkHillsborough County, best early May · 25 checklists that week, 452 in all94%

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

Best time of day

In New Hampshire, the Northern Cardinal is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (48% of those checklists).

0%20%40%60%12 am: too few checklists (219) to judge1 am: too few checklists (192) to judge2 am: too few checklists (176) to judge3 am: too few checklists (234) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1042) to judge5 am: too few checklists (6352) to judge6 am: 51% of 23140 checklists7 am: 46% of 43401 checklists8 am: 42% of 48039 checklists9 am: 36% of 43328 checklists10 am: 30% of 37073 checklists11 am: 28% of 32028 checklists12 pm: 27% of 27396 checklists1 pm: 26% of 25182 checklists2 pm: 25% of 24318 checklists3 pm: 25% of 21974 checklists4 pm: 28% of 17958 checklists5 pm: 29% of 14528 checklists6 pm: 31% of 9144 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (5341) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (1845) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (578) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (346) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (256) 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%30%33%32%
February35%35%38%38%
March36%38%39%40%
April38%42%45%47%
May48%47%43%36%
June31%30%30%30%
July32%31%30%29%
August31%29%25%23%
September24%25%23%26%
October27%26%29%31%
November28%28%28%30%
December34%32%32%33%

Neighboring states

Common questions

When do Northern Cardinals arrive in New Hampshire?
The Northern Cardinal is in New Hampshire all year. It turns up on about 47% of checklists at its peak (early May) and on 24% in its quietest week (early September).
When do Northern Cardinals leave New Hampshire?
The Northern Cardinal does not leave New Hampshire: it is reported all year, from 24% of checklists in early September to 47% in early May.
When is the best time to see a Northern Cardinal in New Hampshire?
The Northern Cardinal is reported most often in early May, on about 47% of New Hampshire checklists.
Where in New Hampshire are Northern Cardinals seen most often?
By county, Strafford County, Hillsborough County, and Merrimack County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Northern Cardinal (counties with at least 200 checklists).