WhenToBird

Colaptes auratus · Picidae

When Do Northern Flickers Arrive in Minnesota?

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

Northern Flickers are in Minnesota all year, but most are here in fall: numbers build from late August, peak in mid September (32% of checklists), and fall back by early October. In the quietest week (mid February) they are still on about 2.7% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildAug 22-31late August
PeakSep 15-21mid September
Fall back byOct 1-7early October
FewestFeb 15-21mid February

Best: mid September. Here all year; numbers build from late August and fall back by early October. Peak: on about 32% of Minnesota checklists.

  1. Janrare
  2. Febrare
  3. Maruncommon
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maycommon
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novuncommon
  12. Decuncommon

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

0%10%20%30%40%Jan 1-7: 3.8% of 20628 checklistsJan 8-14: 3.4% of 14594 checklistsJan 15-21: 3.3% of 14238 checklistsJan 22-31: 3.4% of 20725 checklistsFeb 1-7: 3.1% of 14484 checklistsFeb 8-14: 2.8% of 15988 checklistsFeb 15-21: 2.8% of 20718 checklistsFeb 22-28: 2.7% of 15754 checklistsMar 1-7: 3.2% of 16125 checklistsMar 8-14: 3.5% of 19035 checklistsMar 15-21: 3.7% of 19586 checklistsMar 22-31: 4.8% of 30192 checklistsApr 1-7: 12% of 24262 checklistsApr 8-14: 26% of 30223 checklistsApr 15-21: 25% of 29085 checklistsApr 22-30: 25% of 43574 checklistsMay 1-7: 20% of 39300 checklistsMay 8-14: 16% of 45927 checklistsMay 15-21: 14% of 36632 checklistsMay 22-31: 13% of 43809 checklistsJun 1-7: 12% of 23418 checklistsJun 8-14: 13% of 20450 checklistsJun 15-21: 14% of 19470 checklistsJun 22-30: 15% of 23418 checklistsJul 1-7: 15% of 19104 checklistsJul 8-14: 15% of 16927 checklistsJul 15-21: 15% of 15635 checklistsJul 22-31: 14% of 22073 checklistsAug 1-7: 13% of 16255 checklistsAug 8-14: 12% of 16840 checklistsAug 15-21: 14% of 17475 checklistsAug 22-31: 16% of 26545 checklistsSep 1-7: 23% of 20750 checklistsSep 8-14: 30% of 18494 checklistsSep 15-21: 33% of 18215 checklistsSep 22-30: 32% of 24463 checklistsOct 1-7: 22% of 18252 checklistsOct 8-14: 14% of 19527 checklistsOct 15-21: 9.7% of 17098 checklistsOct 22-31: 6.5% of 24570 checklistsNov 1-7: 5.4% of 16744 checklistsNov 8-14: 5.3% of 13483 checklistsNov 15-21: 5.2% of 12525 checklistsNov 22-30: 5.1% of 17023 checklistsDec 1-7: 4.9% of 11645 checklistsDec 8-14: 4.8% of 11567 checklistsDec 15-21: 5.6% of 13343 checklistsDec 22-31: 5.3% of 19759 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 Minnesota 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 Minnesota

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Clay CountyBest mid September · 104 checklists that week, 9,201 in all57%
  2. Steele CountyBest late September · 154 checklists that week, 4,784 in all52%
  3. Rock CountyBest mid September · 28 checklists that week, 1,979 in all51%
  4. Stevens CountyBest early January · 20 checklists that week, 2,839 in all51%
  5. Hubbard CountyBest mid September · 82 checklists that week, 5,131 in all51%
  6. Mower CountyBest late September · 29 checklists that week, 2,590 in all49%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Kabekona LakeHubbard County, best the second week of July · 28 checklists that week, 1,402 in all94%
  2. Western Waterfront TrailSt. Louis County, best late April · 98 checklists that week, 1,973 in all83%
  3. Minnesota Point (Park Point)St. Louis County, best late April · 25 checklists that week, 336 in all80%
  4. Friendly Marsh ParkDakota County, best mid April · 21 checklists that week, 564 in all78%
  5. Bruce Vento Nature SanctuaryRamsey County, best mid April · 20 checklists that week, 325 in all77%
  6. Theodore Wirth Regional Park (northwest)Hennepin County, best late September · 41 checklists that week, 1,021 in all76%

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

Best time of day

In Minnesota, the Northern Flicker is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (21% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%12 am: too few checklists (349) to judge1 am: too few checklists (331) to judge2 am: too few checklists (286) to judge3 am: too few checklists (364) to judge4 am: too few checklists (863) to judge5 am: too few checklists (7598) to judge6 am: 24% of 35775 checklists7 am: 20% of 90565 checklists8 am: 18% of 110612 checklists9 am: 15% of 106128 checklists10 am: 13% of 96131 checklists11 am: 11% of 83750 checklists12 pm: 10% of 76254 checklists1 pm: 9.6% of 73480 checklists2 pm: 9.4% of 73703 checklists3 pm: 9.6% of 75249 checklists4 pm: 11% of 68810 checklists5 pm: 13% of 51899 checklists6 pm: 13% of 38524 checklists7 pm: 8.6% of 25120 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (10568) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2420) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (748) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (420) 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
January3.8%3.4%3.3%3.4%
February3.1%2.8%2.8%2.7%
March3.2%3.5%3.7%4.8%
April12%26%25%25%
May20%16%14%13%
June12%13%14%15%
July15%15%15%14%
August13%12%14%16%
September23%30%33%32%
October22%14%9.7%6.5%
November5.4%5.3%5.2%5.1%
December4.9%4.8%5.6%5.3%

Neighboring states

  • Iowa: arrives early September, 1 week later than Minnesota
  • Wisconsin: arrives early March, 23 weeks earlier than Minnesota
  • South Dakota: arrives mid June, 9 weeks earlier than Minnesota
  • North Dakota: arrives late August, in the same week than Minnesota

Common questions

When do Northern Flickers arrive in Minnesota?
Northern Flickers are in Minnesota all year, but most are here in fall: numbers build from late August, peak in mid September (32% of checklists), and fall back by early October. In the quietest week (mid February) they are still on about 2.7% of checklists.
When do Northern Flickers leave Minnesota?
Northern Flickers never fully leave Minnesota: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by early October, but some are still reported in every week, about 2.7% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Northern Flicker in Minnesota?
The Northern Flicker is reported most often in mid September, on about 32% of Minnesota checklists.
Where in Minnesota are Northern Flickers seen most often?
By county, Clay County, Steele County, and Rock County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Northern Flicker (counties with at least 200 checklists).