WhenToBird

Pandion haliaetus · Pandionidae

When Do Ospreys Arrive in Connecticut?

Adult female Osprey
Photo: Bill Levine, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Ospreys reach Connecticut in mid March, are common by late March, peak in mid August (29% of checklists), and most are gone by early October.

When to look

First arrivalsMar 15-21mid March
Common byMar 22-31late March
PeakAug 15-21mid August
Most gone byOct 1-7early October

Best: mid August. First arrivals mid March; most are gone by early October. Peak: on about 29% of Connecticut checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maycommon
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octuncommon
  11. Novrare
  12. Decnot usually seen

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

0%10%20%30%Jan 1-7: 0% of 18950 checklistsJan 8-14: 0% of 13676 checklistsJan 15-21: 0% of 13377 checklistsJan 22-31: 0% of 17004 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0% of 10218 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0% of 11568 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.1% of 15916 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0% of 11413 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.1% of 10754 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.2% of 12051 checklistsMar 15-21: 3.3% of 12616 checklistsMar 22-31: 13% of 17801 checklistsApr 1-7: 23% of 13186 checklistsApr 8-14: 25% of 14428 checklistsApr 15-21: 25% of 14738 checklistsApr 22-30: 24% of 21753 checklistsMay 1-7: 22% of 22494 checklistsMay 8-14: 20% of 23363 checklistsMay 15-21: 20% of 20219 checklistsMay 22-31: 20% of 20778 checklistsJun 1-7: 20% of 12234 checklistsJun 8-14: 19% of 12491 checklistsJun 15-21: 18% of 10856 checklistsJun 22-30: 18% of 11964 checklistsJul 1-7: 20% of 9437 checklistsJul 8-14: 21% of 8599 checklistsJul 15-21: 23% of 8252 checklistsJul 22-31: 26% of 11329 checklistsAug 1-7: 27% of 8116 checklistsAug 8-14: 29% of 8051 checklistsAug 15-21: 29% of 8502 checklistsAug 22-31: 30% of 13673 checklistsSep 1-7: 27% of 9873 checklistsSep 8-14: 23% of 9735 checklistsSep 15-21: 20% of 10120 checklistsSep 22-30: 15% of 12543 checklistsOct 1-7: 11% of 10735 checklistsOct 8-14: 8.2% of 10869 checklistsOct 15-21: 5.7% of 10436 checklistsOct 22-31: 3.6% of 13808 checklistsNov 1-7: 1.9% of 10507 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.8% of 9827 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.4% of 9904 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.2% of 13396 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.1% of 8974 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.1% of 9468 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.1% of 11614 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.1% of 16616 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 Connecticut 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 Connecticut

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. New Haven CountyBest mid August · 2004 checklists that week, 139,721 in all53%
  2. New London CountyBest mid August · 955 checklists that week, 65,205 in all43%
  3. Fairfield CountyBest the second week of August · 1582 checklists that week, 139,848 in all35%
  4. Middlesex CountyBest the second week of April · 1130 checklists that week, 39,919 in all31%
  5. Windham CountyBest mid August · 283 checklists that week, 19,034 in all20%
  6. Litchfield CountyBest mid April · 1790 checklists that week, 69,766 in all11%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Griswold CoveNew London County, best the second week of June · 20 checklists that week, 896 in all100%
  2. Rocky Neck State ParkNew London County, best the second week of April · 54 checklists that week, 1,526 in all98%
  3. Greenwich Point ParkFairfield County, best late April · 85 checklists that week, 2,871 in all97%
  4. Great Island MarshesNew London County, best mid May · 20 checklists that week, 439 in all96%
  5. Beard Cove (historical)New Haven County, best the second week of August · 256 checklists that week, 8,925 in all96%
  6. Indian LakeMiddlesex County, best mid April · 24 checklists that week, 252 in all96%

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

Best time of day

In Connecticut, the Osprey is most often listed on checklists started between 5 and 7 pm (15% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%20%12 am: too few checklists (325) to judge1 am: too few checklists (367) to judge2 am: too few checklists (488) to judge3 am: too few checklists (792) to judge4 am: too few checklists (2722) to judge5 am: too few checklists (9489) to judge6 am: 13% of 33657 checklists7 am: 11% of 62964 checklists8 am: 14% of 70645 checklists9 am: 14% of 64870 checklists10 am: 13% of 58827 checklists11 am: 12% of 51689 checklists12 pm: 11% of 45288 checklists1 pm: 11% of 44765 checklists2 pm: 11% of 44173 checklists3 pm: 12% of 41979 checklists4 pm: 13% of 33219 checklists5 pm: 15% of 24828 checklists6 pm: 16% of 15856 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (8126) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (1994) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (533) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (349) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (286) 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%0%0%0%
February0%0%0.1%0%
March0.1%0.2%3.3%13%
April23%25%25%24%
May22%20%20%20%
June20%19%18%18%
July20%21%23%26%
August27%29%29%30%
September27%23%20%15%
October11%8.2%5.7%3.6%
November1.9%0.8%0.4%0.2%
December0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%

Neighboring states

  • Rhode Island: arrives mid March, in the same week than Connecticut
  • Massachusetts: arrives mid March, in the same week than Connecticut
  • New Jersey: arrives mid March, in the same week than Connecticut
  • New York: arrives mid March, in the same week than Connecticut

Common questions

When do Ospreys arrive in Connecticut?
Ospreys reach Connecticut in mid March, are common by late March, peak in mid August (29% of checklists), and most are gone by early October.
When do Ospreys leave Connecticut?
Most Ospreys have left Connecticut by early October, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until early November.
When is the best time to see a Osprey in Connecticut?
The Osprey is reported most often in mid August, on about 29% of Connecticut checklists.
Where in Connecticut are Ospreys seen most often?
By county, New Haven County, New London County, and Fairfield County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Osprey (counties with at least 200 checklists).