WhenToBird

Colaptes auratus · Picidae

When Do Northern Flickers Arrive in Louisiana?

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

Northern Flickers are in Louisiana all year, but most are here in fall: numbers build from late September, peak in the second week of October (18% of checklists), and fall back by early January. In the quietest week (late April) they are still on about 4.5% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildSep 22-30late September
PeakOct 8-14the second week of October
Fall back byJan 1-7early January
FewestApr 22-30late April

Best: the second week of October. Here all year; numbers build from late September and fall back by early January. Peak: on about 18% of Louisiana checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Juluncommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Deccommon

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

0%5%10%15%20%Jan 1-7: 12% of 8384 checklistsJan 8-14: 10% of 6265 checklistsJan 15-21: 9.7% of 6825 checklistsJan 22-31: 9.8% of 8776 checklistsFeb 1-7: 11% of 5956 checklistsFeb 8-14: 9.6% of 6291 checklistsFeb 15-21: 8.5% of 8044 checklistsFeb 22-28: 9.9% of 5946 checklistsMar 1-7: 10% of 5981 checklistsMar 8-14: 10% of 6307 checklistsMar 15-21: 9.4% of 6747 checklistsMar 22-31: 7.9% of 10487 checklistsApr 1-7: 6.0% of 8037 checklistsApr 8-14: 5.2% of 9577 checklistsApr 15-21: 4.3% of 11372 checklistsApr 22-30: 4.4% of 14344 checklistsMay 1-7: 4.9% of 8193 checklistsMay 8-14: 4.7% of 6823 checklistsMay 15-21: 5.2% of 4818 checklistsMay 22-31: 5.5% of 6206 checklistsJun 1-7: 5.9% of 3660 checklistsJun 8-14: 5.4% of 3455 checklistsJun 15-21: 5.6% of 3084 checklistsJun 22-30: 5.3% of 3904 checklistsJul 1-7: 5.8% of 3240 checklistsJul 8-14: 6.0% of 3235 checklistsJul 15-21: 6.9% of 3167 checklistsJul 22-31: 6.2% of 4328 checklistsAug 1-7: 6.0% of 3192 checklistsAug 8-14: 5.5% of 3394 checklistsAug 15-21: 7.2% of 3502 checklistsAug 22-31: 7.0% of 5658 checklistsSep 1-7: 8.0% of 4366 checklistsSep 8-14: 9.1% of 4648 checklistsSep 15-21: 10% of 4369 checklistsSep 22-30: 12% of 6418 checklistsOct 1-7: 15% of 5375 checklistsOct 8-14: 19% of 6213 checklistsOct 15-21: 19% of 5553 checklistsOct 22-31: 16% of 8879 checklistsNov 1-7: 14% of 6231 checklistsNov 8-14: 14% of 5011 checklistsNov 15-21: 15% of 4856 checklistsNov 22-30: 13% of 6696 checklistsDec 1-7: 13% of 4530 checklistsDec 8-14: 12% of 4883 checklistsDec 15-21: 13% of 5833 checklistsDec 22-31: 12% of 9940 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 Louisiana 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 Louisiana

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. La Salle ParishBest late October · 10 checklists that week, 847 in all81%
  2. Claiborne ParishBest mid October · 35 checklists that week, 1,949 in all54%
  3. De Soto ParishBest mid October · 15 checklists that week, 1,023 in all51%
  4. Morehouse ParishBest late October · 15 checklists that week, 638 in all49%
  5. Ouachita ParishBest the second week of October · 125 checklists that week, 6,395 in all49%
  6. Grant ParishBest early December · 11 checklists that week, 998 in all48%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Sam Houston Jones State Park District IICalcasieu Parish, best late October · 26 checklists that week, 558 in all73%
  2. C. Bickham Dickson Park - in Bossier Ph.Caddo Parish, best the second week of October · 21 checklists that week, 581 in all72%
  3. Bluebonnet Swamp Nature CenterEast Baton Rouge Parish, best the second week of December · 24 checklists that week, 1,310 in all71%
  4. Black Bayou LakeOuachita Parish, best mid October · 32 checklists that week, 1,281 in all70%
  5. City Park LakeEast Baton Rouge Parish, best late October · 33 checklists that week, 1,057 in all64%
  6. Red River National Wildlife RefugeBossier Parish, best early January · 26 checklists that week, 1,681 in all60%

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

Best time of day

In Louisiana, the Northern Flicker is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (15% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%20%12 am: too few checklists (110) to judge1 am: too few checklists (95) to judge2 am: too few checklists (78) to judge3 am: too few checklists (145) to judge4 am: too few checklists (266) to judge5 am: too few checklists (2981) to judge6 am: 16% of 21115 checklists7 am: 14% of 38843 checklists8 am: 13% of 36306 checklists9 am: 10% of 31934 checklists10 am: 7.9% of 27208 checklists11 am: 6.5% of 20733 checklists12 pm: 6.3% of 18505 checklists1 pm: 6.0% of 17383 checklists2 pm: 6.6% of 17422 checklists3 pm: 7.5% of 17005 checklists4 pm: 5.9% of 17170 checklists5 pm: 4.7% of 12536 checklists6 pm: 3.9% of 8080 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (3798) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (676) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (311) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (206) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (93) 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
January12%10%9.7%9.8%
February11%9.6%8.5%9.9%
March10%10%9.4%7.9%
April6.0%5.2%4.3%4.4%
May4.9%4.7%5.2%5.5%
June5.9%5.4%5.6%5.3%
July5.8%6.0%6.9%6.2%
August6.0%5.5%7.2%7.0%
September8.0%9.1%10%12%
October15%19%19%16%
November14%14%15%13%
December13%12%13%12%

Neighboring states

  • Mississippi: arrives early October, 1 week later than Louisiana
  • Alabama: arrives early October, 1 week later than Louisiana
  • Texas: arrives mid September, 1 week earlier than Louisiana
  • Arkansas: arrives late September, in the same week than Louisiana

Common questions

When do Northern Flickers arrive in Louisiana?
Northern Flickers are in Louisiana all year, but most are here in fall: numbers build from late September, peak in the second week of October (18% of checklists), and fall back by early January. In the quietest week (late April) they are still on about 4.5% of checklists.
When do Northern Flickers leave Louisiana?
Northern Flickers never fully leave Louisiana: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by early January, but some are still reported in every week, about 4.5% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Northern Flicker in Louisiana?
The Northern Flicker is reported most often in the second week of October, on about 18% of Louisiana checklists.
Where in Louisiana are Northern Flickers seen most often?
By county, La Salle Parish, Claiborne Parish, and De Soto Parish have the highest peak reporting rates for the Northern Flicker (counties with at least 200 checklists).