WhenToBird

Cardinalis cardinalis · Cardinalidae

When Do Northern Cardinals Arrive in North Carolina?

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

The Northern Cardinal is in North Carolina all year. It turns up on about 76% of checklists at its peak (the second week of April) and on 55% in its quietest week (mid November).

When to look

PresentAll year
Peak weekApr 8-14the second week of April
Quietest weekNov 15-21mid November

Best: the second week of April. Here all year. Peak: on about 76% of North Carolina checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%20%40%60%80%Jan 1-7: 56% of 30085 checklistsJan 8-14: 57% of 22728 checklistsJan 15-21: 56% of 24292 checklistsJan 22-31: 57% of 34122 checklistsFeb 1-7: 54% of 26352 checklistsFeb 8-14: 62% of 29663 checklistsFeb 15-21: 66% of 41515 checklistsFeb 22-28: 65% of 24318 checklistsMar 1-7: 68% of 23408 checklistsMar 8-14: 70% of 22658 checklistsMar 15-21: 73% of 22784 checklistsMar 22-31: 75% of 36034 checklistsApr 1-7: 76% of 28131 checklistsApr 8-14: 76% of 29190 checklistsApr 15-21: 77% of 32847 checklistsApr 22-30: 75% of 47966 checklistsMay 1-7: 75% of 37076 checklistsMay 8-14: 73% of 36228 checklistsMay 15-21: 69% of 30378 checklistsMay 22-31: 66% of 40237 checklistsJun 1-7: 66% of 27551 checklistsJun 8-14: 64% of 26473 checklistsJun 15-21: 66% of 22789 checklistsJun 22-30: 67% of 27615 checklistsJul 1-7: 68% of 20022 checklistsJul 8-14: 68% of 19315 checklistsJul 15-21: 65% of 18934 checklistsJul 22-31: 65% of 25600 checklistsAug 1-7: 64% of 17987 checklistsAug 8-14: 60% of 17307 checklistsAug 15-21: 61% of 17080 checklistsAug 22-31: 62% of 25844 checklistsSep 1-7: 64% of 20818 checklistsSep 8-14: 66% of 20070 checklistsSep 15-21: 66% of 21984 checklistsSep 22-30: 68% of 26979 checklistsOct 1-7: 70% of 22605 checklistsOct 8-14: 68% of 22677 checklistsOct 15-21: 63% of 21407 checklistsOct 22-31: 61% of 25927 checklistsNov 1-7: 59% of 18830 checklistsNov 8-14: 56% of 18418 checklistsNov 15-21: 55% of 19101 checklistsNov 22-30: 54% of 25709 checklistsDec 1-7: 56% of 18856 checklistsDec 8-14: 58% of 18745 checklistsDec 15-21: 59% of 22478 checklistsDec 22-31: 55% of 34796 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 North Carolina 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 North Carolina

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Lenoir CountyBest mid September · 31 checklists that week, 2,189 in all94%
  2. Hertford CountyBest the second week of March · 27 checklists that week, 1,343 in all94%
  3. Gates CountyBest early February · 77 checklists that week, 4,066 in all91%
  4. Gaston CountyBest mid April · 287 checklists that week, 10,633 in all89%
  5. Cleveland CountyBest the second week of April · 165 checklists that week, 6,121 in all89%
  6. Duplin CountyBest mid March · 19 checklists that week, 2,097 in all89%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Mecklenburg County Open Space - Colonel Francis J. Beatty ParkMecklenburg County, best late May · 20 checklists that week, 1,469 in all100%
  2. AudubonGuilford County, best late October · 23 checklists that week, 288 in all100%
  3. Eno River Association Preserve - Confluence Natural AreaOrange County, best mid April · 46 checklists that week, 529 in all100%
  4. HazelwoodWake County, best the second week of March · 20 checklists that week, 916 in all100%
  5. City of Raleigh Open Space - Horseshoe ParkWake County, best the second week of May · 22 checklists that week, 478 in all100%

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

Best time of day

In North Carolina, the Northern Cardinal is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (78% of those checklists).

0%20%40%60%80%12 am: too few checklists (520) to judge1 am: too few checklists (489) to judge2 am: too few checklists (442) to judge3 am: too few checklists (544) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1621) to judge5 am: too few checklists (9671) to judge6 am: 77% of 50335 checklists7 am: 79% of 150152 checklists8 am: 75% of 182902 checklists9 am: 69% of 158933 checklists10 am: 62% of 128398 checklists11 am: 58% of 98671 checklists12 pm: 57% of 78640 checklists1 pm: 56% of 72510 checklists2 pm: 56% of 69179 checklists3 pm: 57% of 67669 checklists4 pm: 59% of 63964 checklists5 pm: 63% of 48520 checklists6 pm: 63% of 33196 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (19700) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (6160) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1943) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1119) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (651) 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
January56%57%56%57%
February54%62%66%65%
March68%70%73%75%
April76%76%77%75%
May75%73%69%66%
June66%64%66%67%
July68%68%65%65%
August64%60%61%62%
September64%66%66%68%
October70%68%63%61%
November59%56%55%54%
December56%58%59%55%

Neighboring states

Common questions

When do Northern Cardinals arrive in North Carolina?
The Northern Cardinal is in North Carolina all year. It turns up on about 76% of checklists at its peak (the second week of April) and on 55% in its quietest week (mid November).
When do Northern Cardinals leave North Carolina?
The Northern Cardinal does not leave North Carolina: it is reported all year, from 55% of checklists in mid November to 76% in the second week of April.
When is the best time to see a Northern Cardinal in North Carolina?
The Northern Cardinal is reported most often in the second week of April, on about 76% of North Carolina checklists.
Where in North Carolina are Northern Cardinals seen most often?
By county, Lenoir County, Hertford County, and Gates County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Northern Cardinal (counties with at least 200 checklists).