WhenToBird

Anas acuta · Anatidae

When Do Northern Pintails Arrive in Idaho?

Adult Northern Pintail
Photo: Jan Ebr & Ivana Ebrová, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Northern Pintails are winter birds in Idaho: the first arrive in early August, they are common by the second week of August, peak in mid March (7.7% of checklists), and most are gone by early June.

When to look

First arrivalsAug 1-7early August
Common byAug 8-14the second week of August
PeakMar 15-21mid March
Most gone byJun 1-7early June

Best: mid March. First arrivals early August; most are gone by early June. Peak: on about 7.7% of Idaho checklists.

  1. Januncommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maycommon
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Julrare
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novcommon
  12. Decuncommon

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

0%5%10%Jan 1-7: 2.0% of 9357 checklistsJan 8-14: 1.9% of 6408 checklistsJan 15-21: 1.9% of 6358 checklistsJan 22-31: 2.0% of 8601 checklistsFeb 1-7: 2.0% of 5611 checklistsFeb 8-14: 2.8% of 6090 checklistsFeb 15-21: 2.8% of 7973 checklistsFeb 22-28: 5.6% of 5866 checklistsMar 1-7: 6.7% of 6144 checklistsMar 8-14: 7.7% of 6456 checklistsMar 15-21: 8.0% of 6786 checklistsMar 22-31: 7.4% of 9539 checklistsApr 1-7: 5.6% of 7202 checklistsApr 8-14: 5.0% of 7608 checklistsApr 15-21: 4.6% of 8069 checklistsApr 22-30: 4.2% of 10973 checklistsMay 1-7: 3.1% of 9481 checklistsMay 8-14: 2.4% of 11318 checklistsMay 15-21: 2.1% of 9141 checklistsMay 22-31: 2.0% of 13984 checklistsJun 1-7: 1.7% of 8897 checklistsJun 8-14: 1.3% of 8504 checklistsJun 15-21: 1.2% of 8078 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.8% of 9665 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.7% of 7144 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.6% of 6557 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.6% of 6430 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.8% of 8696 checklistsAug 1-7: 1.3% of 5896 checklistsAug 8-14: 1.9% of 5643 checklistsAug 15-21: 2.8% of 6151 checklistsAug 22-31: 2.7% of 7863 checklistsSep 1-7: 3.4% of 5769 checklistsSep 8-14: 3.2% of 5646 checklistsSep 15-21: 3.0% of 5460 checklistsSep 22-30: 3.0% of 6363 checklistsOct 1-7: 3.4% of 4980 checklistsOct 8-14: 4.3% of 5096 checklistsOct 15-21: 5.0% of 4878 checklistsOct 22-31: 4.6% of 6426 checklistsNov 1-7: 3.8% of 4822 checklistsNov 8-14: 2.8% of 4999 checklistsNov 15-21: 2.5% of 4601 checklistsNov 22-30: 2.3% of 6027 checklistsDec 1-7: 1.8% of 4180 checklistsDec 8-14: 1.5% of 4775 checklistsDec 15-21: 1.6% of 6522 checklistsDec 22-31: 1.8% of 7792 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 Idaho 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 Idaho

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Jerome CountyBest late March · 17 checklists that week, 804 in all40%
  2. Jefferson CountyBest late March · 203 checklists that week, 5,319 in all40%
  3. Elmore CountyBest early March · 111 checklists that week, 6,239 in all36%
  4. Benewah CountyBest early March · 58 checklists that week, 2,541 in all31%
  5. Camas CountyBest late April · 110 checklists that week, 2,112 in all28%
  6. Lewis CountyBest mid October · 14 checklists that week, 603 in all24%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Market Lake Wildlife Management AreaJefferson County, best late March · 45 checklists that week, 697 in all82%
  2. Indian Creek Reservoir Access SiteAda County, best early March · 23 checklists that week, 1,086 in all79%
  3. Blacks Creek ReservoirAda County, best the second week of March · 88 checklists that week, 3,935 in all71%
  4. Clear LakeGooding County, best early January · 41 checklists that week, 174 in all62%
  5. Morley Nelson Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation AreaElmore County, best the second week of March · 38 checklists that week, 1,056 in all57%
  6. Camas Prairie Centennial Marsh Wildlife Management AreaCamas County, best late April · 28 checklists that week, 504 in all55%

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

Best time of day

In Idaho, the Northern Pintail is most often listed on checklists started between 2 and 4 pm (3.6% of those checklists).

0%1%2%3%4%12 am: too few checklists (180) to judge1 am: too few checklists (176) to judge2 am: too few checklists (169) to judge3 am: too few checklists (164) to judge4 am: too few checklists (450) to judge5 am: too few checklists (2270) to judge6 am: 1.5% of 9122 checklists7 am: 2.6% of 22204 checklists8 am: 2.5% of 38672 checklists9 am: 3.0% of 38930 checklists10 am: 3.1% of 37338 checklists11 am: 3.2% of 33508 checklists12 pm: 3.5% of 28544 checklists1 pm: 3.4% of 25774 checklists2 pm: 3.7% of 24296 checklists3 pm: 3.4% of 21784 checklists4 pm: 3.1% of 19051 checklists5 pm: 3.1% of 14150 checklists6 pm: 2.7% of 10014 checklists7 pm: 1.4% of 7495 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (4352) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1449) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (525) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (208) 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
January2.0%1.9%1.9%2.0%
February2.0%2.8%2.8%5.6%
March6.7%7.7%8.0%7.4%
April5.6%5.0%4.6%4.2%
May3.1%2.4%2.1%2.0%
June1.7%1.3%1.2%0.8%
July0.7%0.6%0.6%0.8%
August1.3%1.9%2.8%2.7%
September3.4%3.2%3.0%3.0%
October3.4%4.3%5.0%4.6%
November3.8%2.8%2.5%2.3%
December1.8%1.5%1.6%1.8%

Neighboring states

  • Montana: arrives late July, 1 week earlier than Idaho
  • Utah: arrives the second week of September, 5 weeks later than Idaho
  • Oregon: arrives the second week of August, 1 week later than Idaho
  • Washington: arrives the second week of August, 1 week later than Idaho

Common questions

When do Northern Pintails arrive in Idaho?
Northern Pintails are winter birds in Idaho: the first arrive in early August, they are common by the second week of August, peak in mid March (7.7% of checklists), and most are gone by early June.
When do Northern Pintails leave Idaho?
Most Northern Pintails have left Idaho by early June, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until mid June.
When is the best time to see a Northern Pintail in Idaho?
The Northern Pintail is reported most often in mid March, on about 7.7% of Idaho checklists.
Where in Idaho are Northern Pintails seen most often?
By county, Jerome County, Jefferson County, and Elmore County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Northern Pintail (counties with at least 200 checklists).