WhenToBird

Colaptes auratus · Picidae

When Do Northern Flickers Arrive in Iowa?

Adult male Northern Flicker
Photo: Ben, CC0 1.0 via iNaturalist

Northern Flickers are in Iowa all year, but most are here in fall: numbers build from early September, peak in late September (42% of checklists), and fall back by mid October. In the quietest week (late February) they are still on about 8.0% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildSep 1-7early September
PeakSep 22-30late September
Fall back byOct 15-21mid October
FewestFeb 22-28late February

Best: late September. Here all year; numbers build from early September and fall back by mid October. Peak: on about 42% of Iowa checklists.

  1. Januncommon
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maycommon
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novcommon
  12. Deccommon

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

0%20%40%60%Jan 1-7: 11% of 5551 checklistsJan 8-14: 9.5% of 3498 checklistsJan 15-21: 8.4% of 3803 checklistsJan 22-31: 9.1% of 4807 checklistsFeb 1-7: 9.8% of 3613 checklistsFeb 8-14: 9.2% of 4173 checklistsFeb 15-21: 8.0% of 5796 checklistsFeb 22-28: 8.7% of 4394 checklistsMar 1-7: 7.3% of 5295 checklistsMar 8-14: 9.9% of 5679 checklistsMar 15-21: 9.9% of 5418 checklistsMar 22-31: 20% of 8613 checklistsApr 1-7: 30% of 6970 checklistsApr 8-14: 35% of 7511 checklistsApr 15-21: 30% of 8321 checklistsApr 22-30: 25% of 11976 checklistsMay 1-7: 20% of 11725 checklistsMay 8-14: 16% of 12626 checklistsMay 15-21: 14% of 9372 checklistsMay 22-31: 15% of 10330 checklistsJun 1-7: 14% of 5472 checklistsJun 8-14: 16% of 4568 checklistsJun 15-21: 15% of 3870 checklistsJun 22-30: 17% of 4780 checklistsJul 1-7: 18% of 4201 checklistsJul 8-14: 19% of 3605 checklistsJul 15-21: 18% of 3621 checklistsJul 22-31: 17% of 5093 checklistsAug 1-7: 16% of 3931 checklistsAug 8-14: 18% of 3488 checklistsAug 15-21: 18% of 3802 checklistsAug 22-31: 22% of 6293 checklistsSep 1-7: 25% of 5328 checklistsSep 8-14: 31% of 4622 checklistsSep 15-21: 38% of 4367 checklistsSep 22-30: 45% of 6086 checklistsOct 1-7: 41% of 4708 checklistsOct 8-14: 35% of 4791 checklistsOct 15-21: 28% of 4429 checklistsOct 22-31: 24% of 5633 checklistsNov 1-7: 21% of 4090 checklistsNov 8-14: 17% of 3416 checklistsNov 15-21: 17% of 3398 checklistsNov 22-30: 15% of 4679 checklistsDec 1-7: 14% of 3442 checklistsDec 8-14: 15% of 3322 checklistsDec 15-21: 19% of 4619 checklistsDec 22-31: 16% of 5113 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 Iowa 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.

Embed this map on your site

Where in Iowa

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Union CountyBest early October · 23 checklists that week, 1,133 in all72%
  2. Des Moines CountyBest early October · 28 checklists that week, 2,251 in all70%
  3. Clarke CountyBest early April · 16 checklists that week, 459 in all70%
  4. Calhoun CountyBest mid September · 10 checklists that week, 446 in all68%
  5. Wright CountyBest mid September · 13 checklists that week, 551 in all67%
  6. Sioux CountyBest early October · 11 checklists that week, 1,159 in all65%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Hartman Reserve Nature CenterBlack Hawk County, best late September · 22 checklists that week, 711 in all89%
  2. Martin LakeBlack Hawk County, best late September · 27 checklists that week, 523 in all88%
  3. Saylorville Recreation Area (southeast)Polk County, best early October · 20 checklists that week, 867 in all88%
  4. Scott County ParkScott County, best late September · 32 checklists that week, 553 in all86%
  5. Riverview Recreation AreaBlack Hawk County, best late September · 21 checklists that week, 339 in all84%
  6. Carr ParkStory County, best early October · 22 checklists that week, 1,200 in all81%

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

Best time of day

In Iowa, the Northern Flicker is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (26% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%12 am: too few checklists (96) to judge1 am: too few checklists (99) to judge2 am: too few checklists (67) to judge3 am: too few checklists (82) to judge4 am: too few checklists (201) to judge5 am: too few checklists (1888) to judge6 am: 24% of 11313 checklists7 am: 27% of 25717 checklists8 am: 25% of 29755 checklists9 am: 22% of 28897 checklists10 am: 19% of 26343 checklists11 am: 18% of 21210 checklists12 pm: 17% of 17662 checklists1 pm: 17% of 16595 checklists2 pm: 16% of 16405 checklists3 pm: 16% of 17030 checklists4 pm: 16% of 17378 checklists5 pm: 20% of 14251 checklists6 pm: 16% of 10349 checklists7 pm: 10% of 6233 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (2002) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (392) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (186) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (87) 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
January11%9.5%8.4%9.1%
February9.8%9.2%8.0%8.7%
March7.3%9.9%9.9%20%
April30%35%30%25%
May20%16%14%15%
June14%16%15%17%
July18%19%18%17%
August16%18%18%22%
September25%31%38%45%
October41%35%28%24%
November21%17%17%15%
December14%15%19%16%

Neighboring states

  • Missouri: arrives mid September, 2 weeks later than Iowa
  • Wisconsin: arrives early March, 24 weeks earlier than Iowa
  • Minnesota: arrives late August, 1 week earlier than Iowa
  • Illinois: arrives late March, 21 weeks earlier than Iowa

Common questions

When do Northern Flickers arrive in Iowa?
Northern Flickers are in Iowa all year, but most are here in fall: numbers build from early September, peak in late September (42% of checklists), and fall back by mid October. In the quietest week (late February) they are still on about 8.0% of checklists.
When do Northern Flickers leave Iowa?
Northern Flickers never fully leave Iowa: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by mid October, but some are still reported in every week, about 8.0% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Northern Flicker in Iowa?
The Northern Flicker is reported most often in late September, on about 42% of Iowa checklists.
Where in Iowa are Northern Flickers seen most often?
By county, Union County, Des Moines County, and Clarke County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Northern Flicker (counties with at least 200 checklists).