WhenToBird

Gavia pacifica · Gaviidae

When Do Pacific Loons Arrive in Washington?

Adult Pacific Loon
Photo: Bob Miller, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Pacific Loons are winter birds in Washington: they arrive in mid September, peak in late October (4.4% of checklists), and most are gone by mid March.

When to look

First arrivalsSep 15-21mid September
Common bySep 15-21mid September
PeakOct 22-31late October
Most gone byMar 15-21mid March

Best: late October. First arrivals mid September; most are gone by mid March. Peak: on about 4.4% of Washington checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Maruncommon
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Junrare
  7. Julrare
  8. Augrare
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%2%4%6%Jan 1-7: 2.7% of 41928 checklistsJan 8-14: 3.0% of 31152 checklistsJan 15-21: 2.6% of 31753 checklistsJan 22-31: 2.5% of 42530 checklistsFeb 1-7: 2.1% of 29739 checklistsFeb 8-14: 1.6% of 32746 checklistsFeb 15-21: 1.5% of 40328 checklistsFeb 22-28: 1.6% of 28432 checklistsMar 1-7: 1.5% of 30758 checklistsMar 8-14: 1.3% of 29368 checklistsMar 15-21: 1.3% of 32580 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.9% of 45614 checklistsApr 1-7: 1.0% of 33997 checklistsApr 8-14: 1.0% of 34729 checklistsApr 15-21: 1.0% of 38474 checklistsApr 22-30: 1.0% of 52185 checklistsMay 1-7: 1.4% of 44236 checklistsMay 8-14: 1.3% of 48708 checklistsMay 15-21: 1.2% of 41742 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.9% of 57082 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.5% of 39193 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.4% of 36042 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.2% of 34003 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.2% of 39711 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.1% of 31949 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.2% of 29086 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.2% of 28045 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.2% of 38275 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.3% of 28846 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.3% of 28036 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.4% of 27614 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.6% of 40356 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.6% of 31214 checklistsSep 8-14: 1.0% of 27795 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.2% of 29677 checklistsSep 22-30: 1.8% of 35241 checklistsOct 1-7: 2.6% of 28605 checklistsOct 8-14: 3.3% of 28655 checklistsOct 15-21: 4.5% of 24643 checklistsOct 22-31: 4.5% of 34874 checklistsNov 1-7: 4.1% of 25658 checklistsNov 8-14: 4.1% of 25700 checklistsNov 15-21: 3.8% of 24331 checklistsNov 22-30: 3.5% of 32784 checklistsDec 1-7: 3.5% of 24099 checklistsDec 8-14: 3.3% of 23339 checklistsDec 15-21: 2.8% of 27666 checklistsDec 22-31: 3.0% 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. Jefferson CountyBest early November · 955 checklists that week, 59,663 in all32%
  2. San Juan CountyBest the second week of October · 542 checklists that week, 35,337 in all13%
  3. Kitsap CountyBest mid October · 1248 checklists that week, 74,545 in all12%
  4. Clallam CountyBest early November · 1414 checklists that week, 85,362 in all11%
  5. Grays Harbor CountyBest early November · 311 checklists that week, 28,443 in all7.2%
  6. Island CountyBest late October · 1015 checklists that week, 46,092 in all7.1%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Lighthouse Marine ParkWhatcom County, best the second week of May · 33 checklists that week, 1,449 in all84%
  2. Point No PointKitsap County, best the second week of May · 180 checklists that week, 4,564 in all73%
  3. Point WilsonJefferson County, best early December · 31 checklists that week, 1,948 in all60%
  4. Cattle Point Natural Resources Conservation AreaSan Juan County, best mid May · 22 checklists that week, 849 in all59%

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

Best time of day

In Washington, the Pacific Loon is most often listed on checklists started between 12 and 2 pm (1.9% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%1.5%2%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: 1.0% of 56744 checklists7 am: 1.7% of 133294 checklists8 am: 1.8% of 184196 checklists9 am: 1.8% of 186303 checklists10 am: 1.9% of 177063 checklists11 am: 1.9% of 154936 checklists12 pm: 1.9% of 138061 checklists1 pm: 1.9% of 127449 checklists2 pm: 1.9% of 121511 checklists3 pm: 1.6% of 107793 checklists4 pm: 1.1% of 82862 checklists5 pm: 0.7% of 57183 checklists6 pm: 0.5% 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
January2.7%3.0%2.6%2.5%
February2.1%1.6%1.5%1.6%
March1.5%1.3%1.3%0.9%
April1.0%1.0%1.0%1.0%
May1.4%1.3%1.2%0.9%
June0.5%0.4%0.2%0.2%
July0.1%0.2%0.2%0.2%
August0.3%0.3%0.4%0.6%
September0.6%1.0%1.2%1.8%
October2.6%3.3%4.5%4.5%
November4.1%4.1%3.8%3.5%
December3.5%3.3%2.8%3.0%

Neighboring states

  • Oregon: arrives late June, 11 weeks earlier than Washington
  • Idaho: arrives mid October, 4 weeks later than Washington
  • Montana: arrives the second week of October, 3 weeks later than Washington
  • California: arrives the second week of October, 3 weeks later than Washington

Common questions

When do Pacific Loons arrive in Washington?
Pacific Loons are winter birds in Washington: they arrive in mid September, peak in late October (4.4% of checklists), and most are gone by mid March.
When do Pacific Loons leave Washington?
Most Pacific Loons have left Washington by mid March, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until late March.
When is the best time to see a Pacific Loon in Washington?
The Pacific Loon is reported most often in late October, on about 4.4% of Washington checklists.
Where in Washington are Pacific Loons seen most often?
By county, Jefferson County, San Juan County, and Kitsap County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Pacific Loon (counties with at least 200 checklists).