WhenToBird

Colaptes auratus · Picidae

When Do Northern Flickers Arrive in New York?

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

Northern Flickers are in New York all year, but most are here in spring: numbers build from early April, peak in mid April (37% of checklists), and fall back by late May. In the quietest week (the second week of February) they are still on about 5.0% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildApr 1-7early April
PeakApr 15-21mid April
Fall back byMay 22-31late May
FewestFeb 8-14the second week of February

Best: mid April. Here all year; numbers build from early April and fall back by late May. Peak: on about 37% of New York checklists.

  1. Januncommon
  2. Febrare
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novcommon
  12. Decuncommon

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

0%10%20%30%40%Jan 1-7: 5.8% of 66410 checklistsJan 8-14: 5.5% of 49310 checklistsJan 15-21: 5.1% of 49919 checklistsJan 22-31: 5.2% of 62513 checklistsFeb 1-7: 5.1% of 43526 checklistsFeb 8-14: 5.1% of 49753 checklistsFeb 15-21: 5.0% of 65147 checklistsFeb 22-28: 5.1% of 50173 checklistsMar 1-7: 5.7% of 50325 checklistsMar 8-14: 6.6% of 55371 checklistsMar 15-21: 9.4% of 56293 checklistsMar 22-31: 15% of 82677 checklistsApr 1-7: 24% of 65295 checklistsApr 8-14: 35% of 73080 checklistsApr 15-21: 39% of 73857 checklistsApr 22-30: 38% of 106093 checklistsMay 1-7: 33% of 102772 checklistsMay 8-14: 27% of 110051 checklistsMay 15-21: 24% of 94797 checklistsMay 22-31: 20% of 101272 checklistsJun 1-7: 19% of 59471 checklistsJun 8-14: 19% of 55497 checklistsJun 15-21: 19% of 51761 checklistsJun 22-30: 20% of 59219 checklistsJul 1-7: 21% of 48226 checklistsJul 8-14: 21% of 42315 checklistsJul 15-21: 22% of 40637 checklistsJul 22-31: 21% of 57183 checklistsAug 1-7: 21% of 40461 checklistsAug 8-14: 20% of 39880 checklistsAug 15-21: 20% of 41146 checklistsAug 22-31: 22% of 63381 checklistsSep 1-7: 25% of 48640 checklistsSep 8-14: 31% of 47882 checklistsSep 15-21: 37% of 49063 checklistsSep 22-30: 36% of 57906 checklistsOct 1-7: 34% of 48447 checklistsOct 8-14: 26% of 51901 checklistsOct 15-21: 22% of 46717 checklistsOct 22-31: 18% of 61992 checklistsNov 1-7: 15% of 44593 checklistsNov 8-14: 13% of 42566 checklistsNov 15-21: 11% of 39675 checklistsNov 22-30: 9.6% of 51197 checklistsDec 1-7: 8.5% of 36567 checklistsDec 8-14: 8.0% of 37254 checklistsDec 15-21: 8.7% of 43754 checklistsDec 22-31: 7.9% of 62470 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 York 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 New York

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Kings CountyBest late September · 3423 checklists that week, 134,897 in all56%
  2. Bronx CountyBest mid April · 632 checklists that week, 24,489 in all54%
  3. Orleans CountyBest late September · 253 checklists that week, 16,706 in all52%
  4. Rockland CountyBest mid April · 700 checklists that week, 35,579 in all50%
  5. Westchester CountyBest mid April · 2983 checklists that week, 108,101 in all49%
  6. New York CountyBest mid April · 5878 checklists that week, 187,471 in all46%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Beechwood State ParkWayne County, best mid April · 39 checklists that week, 1,500 in all96%
  2. Washington GroveMonroe County, best late April · 38 checklists that week, 264 in all95%
  3. Lakeside Beach State ParkOrleans County, best mid July · 29 checklists that week, 1,060 in all95%
  4. Owl's Head ParkKings County, best early October · 24 checklists that week, 981 in all92%
  5. Conference House ParkRichmond County, best late September · 44 checklists that week, 1,273 in all91%

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

Best time of day

In New York, the Northern Flicker is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (28% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%40%12 am: too few checklists (1146) to judge1 am: too few checklists (1055) to judge2 am: too few checklists (1121) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1353) to judge4 am: too few checklists (4785) to judge5 am: too few checklists (32052) to judge6 am: 31% of 124869 checklists7 am: 28% of 298506 checklists8 am: 25% of 337334 checklists9 am: 22% of 307787 checklists10 am: 19% of 270801 checklists11 am: 16% of 233238 checklists12 pm: 15% of 213830 checklists1 pm: 14% of 193321 checklists2 pm: 14% of 180741 checklists3 pm: 14% of 170348 checklists4 pm: 15% of 147224 checklists5 pm: 18% of 111962 checklists6 pm: 17% of 78261 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (44425) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (15648) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (4795) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (2454) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (1378) 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
January5.8%5.5%5.1%5.2%
February5.1%5.1%5.0%5.1%
March5.7%6.6%9.4%15%
April24%35%39%38%
May33%27%24%20%
June19%19%19%20%
July21%21%22%21%
August21%20%20%22%
September25%31%37%36%
October34%26%22%18%
November15%13%11%9.6%
December8.5%8.0%8.7%7.9%

Neighboring states

  • Connecticut: arrives early September, 20 weeks later than New York
  • New Jersey: arrives early September, 20 weeks later than New York
  • Pennsylvania: arrives late March, 1 week earlier than New York
  • Vermont: arrives early March, 4 weeks earlier than New York

Common questions

When do Northern Flickers arrive in New York?
Northern Flickers are in New York all year, but most are here in spring: numbers build from early April, peak in mid April (37% of checklists), and fall back by late May. In the quietest week (the second week of February) they are still on about 5.0% of checklists.
When do Northern Flickers leave New York?
Northern Flickers never fully leave New York: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by late May, but some are still reported in every week, about 5.0% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Northern Flicker in New York?
The Northern Flicker is reported most often in mid April, on about 37% of New York checklists.
Where in New York are Northern Flickers seen most often?
By county, Kings County, Bronx County, and Orleans County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Northern Flicker (counties with at least 200 checklists).