WhenToBird

Leiothlypis celata · Parulidae

When Do Orange-crowned Warblers Arrive in Arizona?

Adult Orange-crowned Warbler
Photo: Irene, CC0 1.0 via iNaturalist

Orange-crowned Warblers are winter birds in Arizona: the first arrive in early August, they are common by late August, peak in early October (16% of checklists), and most are gone by early May.

When to look

First arrivalsAug 1-7early August
Common byAug 22-31late August
PeakOct 1-7early October
Most gone byMay 1-7early May

Best: early October. First arrivals early August; most are gone by early May. Peak: on about 16% of Arizona checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Junrare
  7. Julnot usually seen
  8. Augcommon
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novcommon
  12. Deccommon

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

0%5%10%15%20%Jan 1-7: 10% of 34758 checklistsJan 8-14: 10% of 29835 checklistsJan 15-21: 9.7% of 29279 checklistsJan 22-31: 9.9% of 39716 checklistsFeb 1-7: 9.0% of 27299 checklistsFeb 8-14: 8.7% of 28703 checklistsFeb 15-21: 8.2% of 35357 checklistsFeb 22-28: 9.0% of 29889 checklistsMar 1-7: 8.9% of 29932 checklistsMar 8-14: 8.9% of 32982 checklistsMar 15-21: 8.5% of 34731 checklistsMar 22-31: 8.6% of 50213 checklistsApr 1-7: 9.7% of 35788 checklistsApr 8-14: 9.5% of 38087 checklistsApr 15-21: 9.0% of 41520 checklistsApr 22-30: 7.3% of 55218 checklistsMay 1-7: 5.8% of 39688 checklistsMay 8-14: 4.2% of 39398 checklistsMay 15-21: 2.5% of 29562 checklistsMay 22-31: 1.3% of 36774 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.3% of 21313 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.3% of 19129 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.2% of 17922 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.2% of 21188 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.1% of 17325 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.1% of 16463 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.1% of 18642 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.2% of 31215 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.8% of 28163 checklistsAug 8-14: 2.2% of 31329 checklistsAug 15-21: 4.6% of 23878 checklistsAug 22-31: 6.8% of 28508 checklistsSep 1-7: 9.3% of 20878 checklistsSep 8-14: 12% of 19671 checklistsSep 15-21: 14% of 19859 checklistsSep 22-30: 16% of 25179 checklistsOct 1-7: 18% of 19420 checklistsOct 8-14: 15% of 21925 checklistsOct 15-21: 14% of 20995 checklistsOct 22-31: 12% of 29258 checklistsNov 1-7: 11% of 21269 checklistsNov 8-14: 11% of 22753 checklistsNov 15-21: 11% of 21982 checklistsNov 22-30: 11% of 29475 checklistsDec 1-7: 12% of 20810 checklistsDec 8-14: 12% of 22229 checklistsDec 15-21: 11% of 25148 checklistsDec 22-31: 11% of 39567 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 Arizona 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 Arizona

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Yuma CountyBest early October · 175 checklists that week, 14,687 in all37%
  2. La Paz CountyBest late September · 67 checklists that week, 7,279 in all28%
  3. Greenlee CountyBest early October · 33 checklists that week, 2,745 in all24%
  4. Maricopa CountyBest early October · 4673 checklists that week, 269,896 in all22%
  5. Santa Cruz CountyBest early October · 1562 checklists that week, 162,726 in all22%
  6. Mohave CountyBest mid September · 378 checklists that week, 18,083 in all18%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Tonto National Forest (east)Maricopa County, best late February · 54 checklists that week, 726 in all80%
  2. West Wetlands ParkYuma County, best late October · 30 checklists that week, 1,086 in all78%
  3. Tonto National Forest (north 3)Maricopa County, best late November · 29 checklists that week, 257 in all76%
  4. Initial PointMaricopa County, best early December · 65 checklists that week, 1,660 in all75%
  5. Crossroads at Silverbell ParkPima County, best early January · 102 checklists that week, 928 in all75%

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

Best time of day

In Arizona, the Orange-crowned Warbler is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (11% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%12 am: too few checklists (488) to judge1 am: too few checklists (503) to judge2 am: too few checklists (489) to judge3 am: too few checklists (735) to judge4 am: too few checklists (4115) to judge5 am: 4.8% of 38350 checklists6 am: 11% of 118786 checklists7 am: 12% of 183415 checklists8 am: 11% of 187346 checklists9 am: 8.8% of 151342 checklists10 am: 7.4% of 124522 checklists11 am: 6.5% of 97088 checklists12 pm: 6.1% of 78110 checklists1 pm: 6.1% of 73059 checklists2 pm: 5.9% of 68912 checklists3 pm: 5.8% of 68060 checklists4 pm: 5.0% of 69387 checklists5 pm: 3.3% of 52951 checklists6 pm: 1.1% of 31061 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (16076) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (5352) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2369) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1100) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (604) 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
January10%10%9.7%9.9%
February9.0%8.7%8.2%9.0%
March8.9%8.9%8.5%8.6%
April9.7%9.5%9.0%7.3%
May5.8%4.2%2.5%1.3%
June0.3%0.3%0.2%0.2%
July0.1%0.1%0.1%0.2%
August0.8%2.2%4.6%6.8%
September9.3%12%14%16%
October18%15%14%12%
November11%11%11%11%
December12%12%11%11%

Neighboring states

  • New Mexico: arrives early August, in the same week than Arizona
  • Nevada: arrives late July, 1 week earlier than Arizona
  • Utah: arrives mid April, 14 weeks earlier than Arizona
  • California: arrives mid March, 18 weeks earlier than Arizona

Common questions

When do Orange-crowned Warblers arrive in Arizona?
Orange-crowned Warblers are winter birds in Arizona: the first arrive in early August, they are common by late August, peak in early October (16% of checklists), and most are gone by early May.
When do Orange-crowned Warblers leave Arizona?
Most Orange-crowned Warblers have left Arizona by early May, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until late May.
When is the best time to see a Orange-crowned Warbler in Arizona?
The Orange-crowned Warbler is reported most often in early October, on about 16% of Arizona checklists.
Where in Arizona are Orange-crowned Warblers seen most often?
By county, Yuma County, La Paz County, and Greenlee County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Orange-crowned Warbler (counties with at least 200 checklists).