WhenToBird

Anas acuta · Anatidae

When Do Northern Pintails Arrive in Illinois?

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

Northern Pintails are winter birds in Illinois: they arrive in mid September, peak in early March (3.3% of checklists), and most are gone by late March.

When to look

First arrivalsSep 15-21mid September
Common bySep 15-21mid September
PeakMar 1-7early March
Most gone byMar 22-31late March

Best: early March. First arrivals mid September; most are gone by late March. Peak: on about 3.3% of Illinois checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Maynot usually seen
  6. Junnot usually seen
  7. Julnot usually seen
  8. Augrare
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Deccommon

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

0%1%2%3%4%Jan 1-7: 1.3% of 29700 checklistsJan 8-14: 1.1% of 20189 checklistsJan 15-21: 1.2% of 19784 checklistsJan 22-31: 1.2% of 26641 checklistsFeb 1-7: 1.9% of 20478 checklistsFeb 8-14: 1.9% of 21967 checklistsFeb 15-21: 1.9% of 28735 checklistsFeb 22-28: 3.6% of 24223 checklistsMar 1-7: 3.3% of 26775 checklistsMar 8-14: 3.2% of 27579 checklistsMar 15-21: 2.0% of 27193 checklistsMar 22-31: 1.3% of 42278 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.7% of 34579 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.3% of 38290 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.2% of 39261 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.1% of 59584 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.1% of 60485 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.1% of 59647 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.1% of 43173 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.1% of 47913 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.1% of 31151 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.1% of 27692 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.1% of 23983 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.1% of 28448 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.1% of 21273 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.1% of 19284 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.1% of 17712 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.1% of 24500 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.1% of 18498 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.1% of 19331 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.2% of 19983 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.5% of 31892 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.6% of 26396 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.9% of 25011 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.2% of 23597 checklistsSep 22-30: 1.8% of 30638 checklistsOct 1-7: 2.3% of 23949 checklistsOct 8-14: 2.9% of 24412 checklistsOct 15-21: 3.0% of 22359 checklistsOct 22-31: 3.2% of 29794 checklistsNov 1-7: 3.2% of 21877 checklistsNov 8-14: 3.0% of 19742 checklistsNov 15-21: 2.4% of 18989 checklistsNov 22-30: 2.0% of 23905 checklistsDec 1-7: 1.6% of 16935 checklistsDec 8-14: 1.3% of 16687 checklistsDec 15-21: 1.1% of 20931 checklistsDec 22-31: 1.4% of 29011 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 Illinois 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 Illinois

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Putnam CountyBest late October · 91 checklists that week, 3,333 in all76%
  2. Brown CountyBest late February · 11 checklists that week, 403 in all50%
  3. Pulaski CountyBest the second week of February · 60 checklists that week, 1,951 in all47%
  4. Fulton CountyBest early March · 150 checklists that week, 5,877 in all46%
  5. Wayne CountyBest the second week of November · 12 checklists that week, 394 in all45%
  6. Fayette CountyBest early March · 23 checklists that week, 1,050 in all38%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Sue and Wes Dixon Waterfowl Refuge at Hennepin & Hopper LakesPutnam County, best late October · 71 checklists that week, 1,924 in all91%
  2. Emiquon National Wildlife RefugeFulton County, best early March · 26 checklists that week, 1,154 in all83%
  3. RomePeoria County, best late September · 22 checklists that week, 251 in all80%
  4. Crab Orchard National Wildlife Refuge (southeast)Williamson County, best early January · 26 checklists that week, 367 in all65%

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

Best time of day

In Illinois, the Northern Pintail is most often listed on checklists started between 12 and 2 pm (1.4% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%1.5%12 am: too few checklists (484) to judge1 am: too few checklists (631) to judge2 am: too few checklists (485) to judge3 am: too few checklists (610) to judge4 am: too few checklists (2321) to judge5 am: too few checklists (23536) to judge6 am: 0.6% of 95511 checklists7 am: 1.1% of 164584 checklists8 am: 1.1% of 163654 checklists9 am: 1.2% of 141804 checklists10 am: 1.3% of 122882 checklists11 am: 1.3% of 100640 checklists12 pm: 1.4% of 89894 checklists1 pm: 1.3% of 82729 checklists2 pm: 1.4% of 79801 checklists3 pm: 1.2% of 82169 checklists4 pm: 1.1% of 75124 checklists5 pm: 0.7% of 57708 checklists6 pm: 0.3% of 41843 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (20943) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (6131) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1677) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (843) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (448) 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
January1.3%1.1%1.2%1.2%
February1.9%1.9%1.9%3.6%
March3.3%3.2%2.0%1.3%
April0.7%0.3%0.2%0.1%
May0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
June0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
July0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
August0.1%0.1%0.2%0.5%
September0.6%0.9%1.2%1.8%
October2.3%2.9%3.0%3.2%
November3.2%3.0%2.4%2.0%
December1.6%1.3%1.1%1.4%

Neighboring states

  • Indiana: arrives late September, 1 week later than Illinois
  • Wisconsin: arrives mid February, 20 weeks later than Illinois
  • Michigan: arrives the second week of September, 1 week earlier than Illinois
  • Iowa: arrives early February, 18 weeks later than Illinois

Common questions

When do Northern Pintails arrive in Illinois?
Northern Pintails are winter birds in Illinois: they arrive in mid September, peak in early March (3.3% of checklists), and most are gone by late March.
When do Northern Pintails leave Illinois?
Most Northern Pintails have left Illinois by late March, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Northern Pintail in Illinois?
The Northern Pintail is reported most often in early March, on about 3.3% of Illinois checklists.
Where in Illinois are Northern Pintails seen most often?
By county, Putnam County, Brown County, and Pulaski County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Northern Pintail (counties with at least 200 checklists).