WhenToBird

Leiothlypis celata · Parulidae

When Do Orange-crowned Warblers Arrive in Virginia?

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

Orange-crowned Warblers are winter birds in Virginia: they arrive in mid October, peak in mid December (1.2% of checklists), and most are gone by mid March.

When to look

First arrivalsOct 15-21mid October
Common byOct 15-21mid October
PeakDec 15-21mid December
Most gone byMar 15-21mid March

Best: mid December. First arrivals mid October; most are gone by mid March. Peak: on about 1.2% of Virginia checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Maynot usually seen
  6. Junnot usually seen
  7. Julnot usually seen
  8. Augnot usually seen
  9. Seprare
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%0.5%1%1.5%Jan 1-7: 1.0% of 32817 checklistsJan 8-14: 1.1% of 25111 checklistsJan 15-21: 1.1% of 25510 checklistsJan 22-31: 1.0% of 34492 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.8% of 24950 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.6% of 28224 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.5% of 43578 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.5% of 26467 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.5% of 25851 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.5% of 25901 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.4% of 26747 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.4% of 40819 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.4% of 31351 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.2% of 33239 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.1% of 37284 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.1% of 54364 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.1% of 47698 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.1% of 46174 checklistsMay 15-21: 0% of 36444 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.1% of 43203 checklistsJun 1-7: 0% of 28503 checklistsJun 8-14: 0% of 25485 checklistsJun 15-21: 0% of 23728 checklistsJun 22-30: 0% of 28785 checklistsJul 1-7: 0% of 22294 checklistsJul 8-14: 0% of 20481 checklistsJul 15-21: 0% of 18914 checklistsJul 22-31: 0% of 26976 checklistsAug 1-7: 0% of 19555 checklistsAug 8-14: 0% of 18744 checklistsAug 15-21: 0% of 18721 checklistsAug 22-31: 0% of 28763 checklistsSep 1-7: 0% of 23594 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.1% of 22581 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.1% of 23036 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.1% of 29687 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.2% of 24321 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.3% of 23946 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.6% of 22191 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.6% of 30161 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.8% of 21431 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.9% of 22758 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.9% of 19988 checklistsNov 22-30: 1.1% of 27665 checklistsDec 1-7: 1.2% of 19324 checklistsDec 8-14: 1.2% of 20316 checklistsDec 15-21: 1.1% of 25675 checklistsDec 22-31: 1.3% of 38677 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 Virginia 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 Virginia

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Hopewell CountyBest the second week of December · 106 checklists that week, 3,116 in all18%
  2. Norfolk CountyBest the second week of December · 295 checklists that week, 21,204 in all14%
  3. Newport News CountyBest mid November · 177 checklists that week, 11,661 in all8.0%
  4. Virginia Beach CountyBest the second week of December · 1165 checklists that week, 70,485 in all7.9%
  5. Richmond CityBest early December · 391 checklists that week, 23,489 in all5.8%
  6. Portsmouth CountyBest early December · 60 checklists that week, 3,085 in all5.5%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. James River Park (Gillie Creek)Richmond City, best late November · 25 checklists that week, 612 in all56%
  2. Appomattox Manor ParkHopewell County, best the second week of December · 26 checklists that week, 509 in all51%
  3. Princess Anne Wildlife Management AreaVirginia Beach County, best late December · 23 checklists that week, 878 in all46%
  4. Three Oaks ParkVirginia Beach County, best the second week of November · 32 checklists that week, 1,121 in all40%
  5. West GhentNorfolk County, best mid November · 21 checklists that week, 674 in all34%
  6. Lake WhitehurstNorfolk County, best late December · 23 checklists that week, 919 in all34%

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

Best time of day

In Virginia, the Orange-crowned Warbler is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (0.6% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%12 am: too few checklists (485) to judge1 am: too few checklists (488) to judge2 am: too few checklists (423) to judge3 am: too few checklists (565) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1410) to judge5 am: too few checklists (10265) to judge6 am: 0.5% of 64788 checklists7 am: 0.7% of 169128 checklists8 am: 0.6% of 180748 checklists9 am: 0.5% of 153462 checklists10 am: 0.4% of 128966 checklists11 am: 0.4% of 104204 checklists12 pm: 0.4% of 91604 checklists1 pm: 0.4% of 85547 checklists2 pm: 0.3% of 82355 checklists3 pm: 0.3% of 82265 checklists4 pm: 0.2% of 76714 checklists5 pm: 0.1% of 56782 checklists6 pm: 0.1% of 40131 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (24290) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (7744) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (2383) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1122) 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
January1.0%1.1%1.1%1.0%
February0.8%0.6%0.5%0.5%
March0.5%0.5%0.4%0.4%
April0.4%0.2%0.1%0.1%
May0.1%0.1%0%0.1%
June0%0%0%0%
July0%0%0%0%
August0%0%0%0%
September0%0.1%0.1%0.1%
October0.2%0.3%0.6%0.6%
November0.8%0.9%0.9%1.1%
December1.2%1.2%1.1%1.3%

Neighboring states

  • District of Columbia: arrives mid October, in the same week than Virginia
  • Delaware: arrives the second week of November, 3 weeks later than Virginia
  • North Carolina: arrives the second week of October, 1 week earlier than Virginia
  • New Jersey: arrives early October, 2 weeks earlier than Virginia

Common questions

When do Orange-crowned Warblers arrive in Virginia?
Orange-crowned Warblers are winter birds in Virginia: they arrive in mid October, peak in mid December (1.2% of checklists), and most are gone by mid March.
When do Orange-crowned Warblers leave Virginia?
Most Orange-crowned Warblers have left Virginia by mid March, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Orange-crowned Warbler in Virginia?
The Orange-crowned Warbler is reported most often in mid December, on about 1.2% of Virginia checklists.
Where in Virginia are Orange-crowned Warblers seen most often?
By county, Hopewell County, Norfolk County, and Newport News County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Orange-crowned Warbler (counties with at least 200 checklists).