WhenToBird

Colaptes auratus · Picidae

When Do Northern Flickers Arrive in New Jersey?

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

Northern Flickers are in New Jersey all year, but most are here in fall: numbers build from early September, peak in late September (41% of checklists), and fall back by early November. In the quietest week (the second week of February) they are still on about 11% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildSep 1-7early September
PeakSep 22-30late September
Fall back byNov 1-7early November
FewestFeb 8-14the second week of February

Best: late September. Here all year; numbers build from early September and fall back by early November. Peak: on about 41% of New Jersey checklists.

  1. Januncommon
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maycommon
  6. Juncommon
  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: 12% of 28167 checklistsJan 8-14: 12% of 20583 checklistsJan 15-21: 11% of 19739 checklistsJan 22-31: 12% of 24586 checklistsFeb 1-7: 12% of 17226 checklistsFeb 8-14: 11% of 19567 checklistsFeb 15-21: 10% of 26553 checklistsFeb 22-28: 12% of 19046 checklistsMar 1-7: 13% of 17969 checklistsMar 8-14: 16% of 18976 checklistsMar 15-21: 21% of 18581 checklistsMar 22-31: 29% of 27590 checklistsApr 1-7: 39% of 21202 checklistsApr 8-14: 42% of 23609 checklistsApr 15-21: 39% of 25056 checklistsApr 22-30: 35% of 36679 checklistsMay 1-7: 30% of 38378 checklistsMay 8-14: 23% of 44071 checklistsMay 15-21: 22% of 34076 checklistsMay 22-31: 23% of 32558 checklistsJun 1-7: 25% of 18049 checklistsJun 8-14: 24% of 15597 checklistsJun 15-21: 24% of 14894 checklistsJun 22-30: 23% of 17187 checklistsJul 1-7: 23% of 13406 checklistsJul 8-14: 24% of 12550 checklistsJul 15-21: 23% of 12358 checklistsJul 22-31: 22% of 18382 checklistsAug 1-7: 21% of 13689 checklistsAug 8-14: 20% of 14006 checklistsAug 15-21: 20% of 14483 checklistsAug 22-31: 24% of 23182 checklistsSep 1-7: 27% of 17984 checklistsSep 8-14: 32% of 18320 checklistsSep 15-21: 39% of 20491 checklistsSep 22-30: 42% of 26176 checklistsOct 1-7: 41% of 24112 checklistsOct 8-14: 39% of 24603 checklistsOct 15-21: 34% of 24549 checklistsOct 22-31: 30% of 26206 checklistsNov 1-7: 26% of 17469 checklistsNov 8-14: 24% of 15102 checklistsNov 15-21: 23% of 14958 checklistsNov 22-30: 21% of 19447 checklistsDec 1-7: 19% of 14017 checklistsDec 8-14: 18% of 14625 checklistsDec 15-21: 20% of 16937 checklistsDec 22-31: 17% of 26651 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 Jersey 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 New Jersey

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Passaic CountyBest mid April · 799 checklists that week, 24,933 in all58%
  2. Mercer CountyBest the second week of April · 1181 checklists that week, 56,614 in all57%
  3. Hunterdon CountyBest late September · 1208 checklists that week, 57,610 in all56%
  4. Burlington CountyBest early October · 922 checklists that week, 52,358 in all55%
  5. Morris CountyBest mid April · 1769 checklists that week, 59,212 in all53%
  6. Union CountyBest late April · 938 checklists that week, 23,647 in all53%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. West Essex ParkEssex County, best the second week of October · 28 checklists that week, 1,556 in all97%
  2. Troy Meadows State ParkMorris County, best early October · 23 checklists that week, 449 in all94%
  3. Memorial Park (Pine Grove)Burlington County, best late September · 22 checklists that week, 487 in all93%
  4. Delaware Water Gap National Recreation AreaSussex County, best late October · 23 checklists that week, 316 in all92%
  5. Losen Slote ParkBergen County, best early September · 28 checklists that week, 1,252 in all91%
  6. Wright CoveBurlington County, best early April · 21 checklists that week, 793 in all91%

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

Best time of day

In New Jersey, the Northern Flicker is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (38% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%40%12 am: too few checklists (746) to judge1 am: too few checklists (640) to judge2 am: too few checklists (606) to judge3 am: too few checklists (755) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1681) to judge5 am: too few checklists (11258) to judge6 am: 40% of 50447 checklists7 am: 37% of 118312 checklists8 am: 32% of 123273 checklists9 am: 27% of 107783 checklists10 am: 23% of 97537 checklists11 am: 20% of 82427 checklists12 pm: 19% of 72581 checklists1 pm: 18% of 71478 checklists2 pm: 18% of 69994 checklists3 pm: 18% of 66822 checklists4 pm: 18% of 55950 checklists5 pm: 21% of 41360 checklists6 pm: 18% of 28122 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (14727) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (4257) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1273) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (920) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (693) 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%12%11%12%
February12%11%10%12%
March13%16%21%29%
April39%42%39%35%
May30%23%22%23%
June25%24%24%23%
July23%24%23%22%
August21%20%20%24%
September27%32%39%42%
October41%39%34%30%
November26%24%23%21%
December19%18%20%17%

Neighboring states

  • Delaware: arrives mid September, 2 weeks later than New Jersey
  • Connecticut: arrives early September, in the same week than New Jersey
  • Pennsylvania: arrives late March, 21 weeks earlier than New Jersey
  • New York: arrives early April, 20 weeks earlier than New Jersey

Common questions

When do Northern Flickers arrive in New Jersey?
Northern Flickers are in New Jersey all year, but most are here in fall: numbers build from early September, peak in late September (41% of checklists), and fall back by early November. In the quietest week (the second week of February) they are still on about 11% of checklists.
When do Northern Flickers leave New Jersey?
Northern Flickers never fully leave New Jersey: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by early November, but some are still reported in every week, about 11% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Northern Flicker in New Jersey?
The Northern Flicker is reported most often in late September, on about 41% of New Jersey checklists.
Where in New Jersey are Northern Flickers seen most often?
By county, Passaic County, Mercer County, and Hunterdon County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Northern Flicker (counties with at least 200 checklists).