WhenToBird

Setophaga americana · Parulidae

When Do Northern Parulas Arrive in North Carolina?

Adult Northern Parula
Photo: Terry Woodward, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Northern Parulas reach North Carolina in mid March, are common by late March, peak in late April (27% of checklists), and most are gone by mid October.

When to look

First arrivalsMar 15-21mid March
Common byMar 22-31late March
PeakApr 22-30late April
Most gone byOct 15-21mid October

Best: late April. First arrivals mid March; most are gone by mid October. Peak: on about 27% of North Carolina checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Maruncommon
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Juncommon
  7. Juluncommon
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novnot usually seen
  12. Decnot usually seen

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

0%10%20%30%Jan 1-7: 0.1% of 30085 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.1% of 22728 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.1% of 24292 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.1% of 34122 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.1% of 26352 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.1% of 29663 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.1% of 41515 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.1% of 24318 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.1% of 23408 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.1% of 22658 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.7% of 22784 checklistsMar 22-31: 4.8% of 36034 checklistsApr 1-7: 13% of 28131 checklistsApr 8-14: 19% of 29190 checklistsApr 15-21: 23% of 32847 checklistsApr 22-30: 28% of 47966 checklistsMay 1-7: 30% of 37076 checklistsMay 8-14: 22% of 36228 checklistsMay 15-21: 17% of 30378 checklistsMay 22-31: 14% of 40237 checklistsJun 1-7: 14% of 27551 checklistsJun 8-14: 13% of 26473 checklistsJun 15-21: 13% of 22789 checklistsJun 22-30: 12% of 27615 checklistsJul 1-7: 9.9% of 20022 checklistsJul 8-14: 6.5% of 19315 checklistsJul 15-21: 4.1% of 18934 checklistsJul 22-31: 2.7% of 25600 checklistsAug 1-7: 2.3% of 17987 checklistsAug 8-14: 2.9% of 17307 checklistsAug 15-21: 4.1% of 17080 checklistsAug 22-31: 6.5% of 25844 checklistsSep 1-7: 9.7% of 20818 checklistsSep 8-14: 13% of 20070 checklistsSep 15-21: 15% of 21984 checklistsSep 22-30: 17% of 26979 checklistsOct 1-7: 19% of 22605 checklistsOct 8-14: 14% of 22677 checklistsOct 15-21: 8.1% of 21407 checklistsOct 22-31: 2.4% of 25927 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.2% of 18830 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.1% of 18418 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.1% of 19101 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.1% of 25709 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.1% of 18856 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.1% of 18745 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.1% of 22478 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.1% of 34796 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 North Carolina 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 North Carolina

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Jones CountyBest early April · 89 checklists that week, 2,012 in all57%
  2. Gates CountyBest late September · 73 checklists that week, 4,066 in all56%
  3. Granville CountyBest early May · 193 checklists that week, 4,892 in all56%
  4. Transylvania CountyBest mid April · 611 checklists that week, 18,992 in all55%
  5. Chatham CountyBest late April · 1168 checklists that week, 33,471 in all54%
  6. Macon CountyBest late April · 360 checklists that week, 7,412 in all54%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Mayo River State ParkRockingham County, best early May · 24 checklists that week, 258 in all94%
  2. Trout Lake (northeast)Watauga County, best early June · 21 checklists that week, 322 in all94%
  3. Eno River State ParkOrange County, best the second week of April · 29 checklists that week, 1,063 in all92%
  4. Transylvani Activity CenterTransylvania County, best the second week of May · 78 checklists that week, 1,346 in all91%

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

Best time of day

In North Carolina, the Northern Parula is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (14% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%20%12 am: too few checklists (520) to judge1 am: too few checklists (489) to judge2 am: too few checklists (442) to judge3 am: too few checklists (544) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1621) to judge5 am: too few checklists (9671) to judge6 am: 16% of 50335 checklists7 am: 14% of 150152 checklists8 am: 11% of 182902 checklists9 am: 9.6% of 158933 checklists10 am: 7.9% of 128398 checklists11 am: 6.8% of 98671 checklists12 pm: 5.9% of 78640 checklists1 pm: 5.4% of 72510 checklists2 pm: 5.0% of 69179 checklists3 pm: 4.6% of 67669 checklists4 pm: 4.8% of 63964 checklists5 pm: 5.7% of 48520 checklists6 pm: 5.0% of 33196 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (19700) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (6160) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1943) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1119) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (651) 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
January0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
February0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
March0.1%0.1%0.7%4.8%
April13%19%23%28%
May30%22%17%14%
June14%13%13%12%
July9.9%6.5%4.1%2.7%
August2.3%2.9%4.1%6.5%
September9.7%13%15%17%
October19%14%8.1%2.4%
November0.2%0.1%0.1%0.1%
December0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%

Neighboring states

  • South Carolina: arrives early March, 2 weeks earlier than North Carolina
  • Virginia: arrives early April, 2 weeks later than North Carolina
  • West Virginia: arrives the second week of April, 3 weeks later than North Carolina
  • District of Columbia: arrives the second week of April, 3 weeks later than North Carolina

Common questions

When do Northern Parulas arrive in North Carolina?
Northern Parulas reach North Carolina in mid March, are common by late March, peak in late April (27% of checklists), and most are gone by mid October.
When do Northern Parulas leave North Carolina?
Most Northern Parulas have left North Carolina by mid October, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until late October.
When is the best time to see a Northern Parula in North Carolina?
The Northern Parula is reported most often in late April, on about 27% of North Carolina checklists.
Where in North Carolina are Northern Parulas seen most often?
By county, Jones County, Gates County, and Granville County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Northern Parula (counties with at least 200 checklists).