WhenToBird

Pandion haliaetus · Pandionidae

When Do Ospreys Arrive in West Virginia?

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

Ospreys arrive in West Virginia in mid March, peak in the second week of August (6.3% of checklists), and most are gone by early October.

When to look

First arrivalsMar 15-21mid March
Common byMar 15-21mid March
PeakAug 8-14the second week of August
Most gone byOct 1-7early October

Best: the second week of August. First arrivals mid March; most are gone by early October. Peak: on about 6.3% of West Virginia checklists.

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

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

0%2%4%6%8%Jan 1-7: 0% of 4227 checklistsJan 8-14: 0% of 3147 checklistsJan 15-21: 0% of 3410 checklistsJan 22-31: 0% of 4248 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0% of 3150 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0% of 3653 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0% of 5140 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0% of 3846 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.3% of 3901 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.6% of 3820 checklistsMar 15-21: 2.1% of 3781 checklistsMar 22-31: 3.7% of 5705 checklistsApr 1-7: 6.0% of 4529 checklistsApr 8-14: 5.5% of 4935 checklistsApr 15-21: 5.0% of 5429 checklistsApr 22-30: 5.8% of 8015 checklistsMay 1-7: 5.0% of 7421 checklistsMay 8-14: 3.3% of 6910 checklistsMay 15-21: 2.7% of 5596 checklistsMay 22-31: 3.0% of 6884 checklistsJun 1-7: 2.6% of 4123 checklistsJun 8-14: 2.7% of 3957 checklistsJun 15-21: 2.0% of 3863 checklistsJun 22-30: 3.0% of 4217 checklistsJul 1-7: 2.7% of 3491 checklistsJul 8-14: 2.9% of 3044 checklistsJul 15-21: 3.6% of 3095 checklistsJul 22-31: 4.2% of 4120 checklistsAug 1-7: 5.6% of 3009 checklistsAug 8-14: 6.7% of 3007 checklistsAug 15-21: 6.5% of 2905 checklistsAug 22-31: 5.7% of 4312 checklistsSep 1-7: 4.2% of 3429 checklistsSep 8-14: 4.3% of 3217 checklistsSep 15-21: 4.9% of 3285 checklistsSep 22-30: 2.9% of 4067 checklistsOct 1-7: 2.4% of 3380 checklistsOct 8-14: 1.6% of 3460 checklistsOct 15-21: 1.2% of 3129 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.7% of 3881 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.2% of 3084 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.2% of 2869 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.1% of 2484 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.1% of 3663 checklistsDec 1-7: 0% of 2574 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.1% of 2680 checklistsDec 15-21: 0% of 3792 checklistsDec 22-31: 0% of 4236 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 West 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 West Virginia

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Mason CountyBest late July · 43 checklists that week, 2,835 in all47%
  2. Lewis CountyBest late March · 70 checklists that week, 1,802 in all40%
  3. Barbour CountyBest early May · 47 checklists that week, 1,534 in all28%
  4. Pleasants CountyBest mid August · 12 checklists that week, 1,671 in all28%
  5. Summers CountyBest mid August · 90 checklists that week, 5,370 in all21%
  6. Wetzel CountyBest mid July · 10 checklists that week, 1,196 in all19%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Stonewall Jackson Lake Wildlife Management AreaLewis County, best late July · 20 checklists that week, 217 in all91%
  2. Marmet Pool Recreation AreaKanawha County, best the second week of April · 44 checklists that week, 1,535 in all73%
  3. Byrd Pool Recreation AreaMason County, best early May · 22 checklists that week, 455 in all63%
  4. Fairfax Pond / Rehe Wildlife Management AreaPreston County, best late April · 47 checklists that week, 1,150 in all62%
  5. Pleasant Creek Wildlife Management AreaBarbour County, best early May · 24 checklists that week, 873 in all51%
  6. Deegan LakeHarrison County, best the second week of April · 21 checklists that week, 718 in all49%

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

Best time of day

In West Virginia, the Osprey is most often listed on checklists started between 9 and 11 am (3.2% of those checklists).

0%1%2%3%4%12 am: too few checklists (65) to judge1 am: too few checklists (47) to judge2 am: too few checklists (46) to judge3 am: too few checklists (49) to judge4 am: too few checklists (140) to judge5 am: too few checklists (952) to judge6 am: 2.0% of 5860 checklists7 am: 1.9% of 18233 checklists8 am: 2.7% of 24468 checklists9 am: 3.3% of 22542 checklists10 am: 3.1% of 19537 checklists11 am: 3.1% of 16362 checklists12 pm: 2.6% of 14819 checklists1 pm: 2.9% of 12772 checklists2 pm: 2.5% of 11765 checklists3 pm: 2.6% of 12579 checklists4 pm: 1.7% of 11463 checklists5 pm: 2.5% of 9409 checklists6 pm: 2.2% of 6557 checklists7 pm: 1.8% of 4256 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (1589) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (377) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (147) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (86) 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%0%
March0.3%0.6%2.1%3.7%
April6.0%5.5%5.0%5.8%
May5.0%3.3%2.7%3.0%
June2.6%2.7%2.0%3.0%
July2.7%2.9%3.6%4.2%
August5.6%6.7%6.5%5.7%
September4.2%4.3%4.9%2.9%
October2.4%1.6%1.2%0.7%
November0.2%0.2%0.1%0.1%
December0%0.1%0%0%

Neighboring states

  • Virginia: arrives late February, 3 weeks earlier than West Virginia
  • District of Columbia: arrives early March, 2 weeks earlier than West Virginia
  • Maryland: arrives early March, 2 weeks earlier than West Virginia
  • Ohio: arrives mid March, in the same week than West Virginia

Common questions

When do Ospreys arrive in West Virginia?
Ospreys arrive in West Virginia in mid March, peak in the second week of August (6.3% of checklists), and most are gone by early October.
When do Ospreys leave West Virginia?
Most Ospreys have left West Virginia by early October, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until mid October.
When is the best time to see a Osprey in West Virginia?
The Osprey is reported most often in the second week of August, on about 6.3% of West Virginia checklists.
Where in West Virginia are Ospreys seen most often?
By county, Mason County, Lewis County, and Barbour County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Osprey (counties with at least 200 checklists).