WhenToBird

Leiothlypis celata · Parulidae

When Do Orange-crowned Warblers Arrive in Washington?

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

Orange-crowned Warblers reach Washington in mid March, are common by early April, peak in early May (19% of checklists), and most are gone by late September.

When to look

First arrivalsMar 15-21mid March
Common byApr 1-7early April
PeakMay 1-7early May
Most gone bySep 22-30late September

Best: early May. First arrivals mid March; most are gone by late September. Peak: on about 19% of Washington checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marrare
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Juncommon
  7. Juluncommon
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octuncommon
  11. Novrare
  12. Decrare

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

0%10%20%30%Jan 1-7: 0.6% of 41928 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.6% of 31152 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.6% of 31753 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.6% of 42530 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.6% of 29739 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.7% of 32746 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.7% of 40328 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.7% of 28432 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.7% of 30758 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.7% of 29368 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.9% of 32580 checklistsMar 22-31: 1.4% of 45614 checklistsApr 1-7: 4.4% of 33997 checklistsApr 8-14: 8.6% of 34729 checklistsApr 15-21: 14% of 38474 checklistsApr 22-30: 21% of 52185 checklistsMay 1-7: 21% of 44236 checklistsMay 8-14: 16% of 48708 checklistsMay 15-21: 13% of 41742 checklistsMay 22-31: 9.8% of 57082 checklistsJun 1-7: 8.7% of 39193 checklistsJun 8-14: 8.6% of 36042 checklistsJun 15-21: 8.9% of 34003 checklistsJun 22-30: 8.6% of 39711 checklistsJul 1-7: 6.5% of 31949 checklistsJul 8-14: 4.2% of 29086 checklistsJul 15-21: 3.1% of 28045 checklistsJul 22-31: 2.5% of 38275 checklistsAug 1-7: 2.4% of 28846 checklistsAug 8-14: 3.0% of 28036 checklistsAug 15-21: 3.8% of 27614 checklistsAug 22-31: 6.4% of 40356 checklistsSep 1-7: 7.5% of 31214 checklistsSep 8-14: 7.8% of 27795 checklistsSep 15-21: 7.8% of 29677 checklistsSep 22-30: 4.8% of 35241 checklistsOct 1-7: 2.4% of 28605 checklistsOct 8-14: 1.7% of 28655 checklistsOct 15-21: 1.0% of 24643 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.9% of 34874 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.6% of 25658 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.6% of 25700 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.7% of 24331 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.9% of 32784 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.8% of 24099 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.7% of 23339 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.8% of 27666 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.8% of 42130 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 Washington 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 Washington

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. San Juan CountyBest late April · 1033 checklists that week, 35,337 in all46%
  2. Skamania CountyBest late April · 292 checklists that week, 10,140 in all37%
  3. Jefferson CountyBest early May · 1407 checklists that week, 59,663 in all35%
  4. Mason CountyBest late April · 794 checklists that week, 27,853 in all34%
  5. Clallam CountyBest early May · 1922 checklists that week, 85,362 in all32%
  6. Kitsap CountyBest early May · 1822 checklists that week, 74,545 in all28%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Sportsmans LakeSan Juan County, best early May · 33 checklists that week, 609 in all85%
  2. Garrison BaySan Juan County, best mid April · 20 checklists that week, 614 in all85%
  3. Sehome Hill ParkWhatcom County, best early May · 27 checklists that week, 560 in all78%
  4. Zyistra LakeSan Juan County, best late May · 36 checklists that week, 881 in all77%

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

Best time of day

In Washington, 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 (796) to judge1 am: too few checklists (776) to judge2 am: too few checklists (709) to judge3 am: too few checklists (901) to judge4 am: too few checklists (3221) to judge5 am: too few checklists (16576) to judge6 am: 14% of 56744 checklists7 am: 9.5% of 133294 checklists8 am: 7.3% of 184196 checklists9 am: 5.7% of 186303 checklists10 am: 4.9% of 177063 checklists11 am: 4.4% of 154936 checklists12 pm: 3.8% of 138061 checklists1 pm: 3.4% of 127449 checklists2 pm: 3.2% of 121511 checklists3 pm: 3.1% of 107793 checklists4 pm: 3.3% of 82862 checklists5 pm: 3.8% of 57183 checklists6 pm: 3.7% of 39886 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (26969) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (12427) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (3658) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1500) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (834) 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
January0.6%0.6%0.6%0.6%
February0.6%0.7%0.7%0.7%
March0.7%0.7%0.9%1.4%
April4.4%8.6%14%21%
May21%16%13%9.8%
June8.7%8.6%8.9%8.6%
July6.5%4.2%3.1%2.5%
August2.4%3.0%3.8%6.4%
September7.5%7.8%7.8%4.8%
October2.4%1.7%1.0%0.9%
November0.6%0.6%0.7%0.9%
December0.8%0.7%0.8%0.8%

Neighboring states

  • Oregon: arrives mid March, in the same week than Washington
  • Idaho: arrives mid April, 4 weeks later than Washington
  • Montana: arrives the second week of August, 19 weeks later than Washington
  • Nevada: arrives late July, 17 weeks later than Washington

Common questions

When do Orange-crowned Warblers arrive in Washington?
Orange-crowned Warblers reach Washington in mid March, are common by early April, peak in early May (19% of checklists), and most are gone by late September.
When do Orange-crowned Warblers leave Washington?
Most Orange-crowned Warblers have left Washington by late September, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until mid October.
When is the best time to see a Orange-crowned Warbler in Washington?
The Orange-crowned Warbler is reported most often in early May, on about 19% of Washington checklists.
Where in Washington are Orange-crowned Warblers seen most often?
By county, San Juan County, Skamania County, and Jefferson County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Orange-crowned Warbler (counties with at least 200 checklists).