WhenToBird

Calidris melanotos · Scolopacidae

When Do Pectoral Sandpipers Arrive in California?

Adult Pectoral Sandpiper
Photo: Peter Chen 2.0, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Pectoral Sandpipers mostly pass through California: they arrive in late August, peak in late September (1.4% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of October.

When to look

First arrivalsAug 22-31late August
Common byAug 22-31late August
PeakSep 22-30late September
Most gone byOct 8-14the second week of October

Best: late September. First arrivals late August; most are gone by the second week of October. Peak: on about 1.4% of California checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Marnot usually seen
  4. Aprnot usually seen
  5. Maynot usually seen
  6. Junnot usually seen
  7. Julrare
  8. Augcommon
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novrare
  12. Decnot usually seen

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

0%0.5%1%1.5%2%Jan 1-7: 0% of 112336 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.1% of 85518 checklistsJan 15-21: 0% of 86488 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.1% of 116174 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0% of 75171 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.1% of 84467 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.1% of 105683 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0% of 83396 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.1% of 77470 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.1% of 75180 checklistsMar 15-21: 0% of 80770 checklistsMar 22-31: 0% of 114116 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.1% of 84057 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.1% of 83692 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.1% of 89242 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.1% of 114289 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.1% of 85728 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.1% of 91984 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.1% of 75478 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.1% of 106250 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.1% of 70051 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.1% of 67485 checklistsJun 15-21: 0% of 66269 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.1% of 79172 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.1% of 62877 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.1% of 60328 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.1% of 59705 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.1% of 83796 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.1% of 60215 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.1% of 60172 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.2% of 59877 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.6% of 89107 checklistsSep 1-7: 1.2% of 72000 checklistsSep 8-14: 1.1% of 71228 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.4% of 76808 checklistsSep 22-30: 1.6% of 100204 checklistsOct 1-7: 1.1% of 76571 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.7% of 80874 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.5% of 74581 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.2% of 97498 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.1% of 70851 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.1% of 72431 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.1% of 66767 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.1% of 94737 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.1% of 65393 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.1% of 67449 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.1% of 83421 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.1% of 124993 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 California 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 California

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Colusa CountyBest mid September · 108 checklists that week, 7,653 in all12%
  2. Del Norte CountyBest mid September · 327 checklists that week, 16,363 in all8.5%
  3. Yuba CountyBest early September · 79 checklists that week, 6,013 in all5.5%
  4. Glenn CountyBest mid August · 45 checklists that week, 5,189 in all5.1%
  5. Napa CountyBest mid September · 314 checklists that week, 18,976 in all4.6%
  6. Humboldt CountyBest late September · 2958 checklists that week, 95,963 in all4.4%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Lower Otay Lakes (Jamul Valley)San Diego County, best late September · 56 checklists that week, 236 in all83%
  2. Goleta Slough Ecological ReserveSanta Barbara County, best late September · 20 checklists that week, 655 in all81%
  3. City of San Diego Open SpaceSan Diego County, best early September · 60 checklists that week, 579 in all73%
  4. Lake TalawaDel Norte County, best the second week of September · 45 checklists that week, 464 in all70%

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

Best time of day

In California, the Pectoral Sandpiper is most often listed on checklists started between 5 and 7 pm (0.2% of those checklists).

0%0.5%12 am: too few checklists (1688) to judge1 am: too few checklists (1451) to judge2 am: too few checklists (1402) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1743) to judge4 am: too few checklists (4647) to judge5 am: too few checklists (32158) to judge6 am: 0.2% of 186053 checklists7 am: 0.2% of 444086 checklists8 am: 0.2% of 535846 checklists9 am: 0.2% of 486061 checklists10 am: 0.2% of 411130 checklists11 am: 0.2% of 325798 checklists12 pm: 0.2% of 269132 checklists1 pm: 0.2% of 244762 checklists2 pm: 0.2% of 235420 checklists3 pm: 0.2% of 232365 checklists4 pm: 0.2% of 208688 checklists5 pm: 0.3% of 146104 checklists6 pm: 0.2% of 96867 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (50942) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (14803) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (5561) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (3546) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (2092) 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%0.1%0%0.1%
February0%0.1%0.1%0%
March0.1%0.1%0%0%
April0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
May0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
June0.1%0.1%0%0.1%
July0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
August0.1%0.1%0.2%0.6%
September1.2%1.1%1.4%1.6%
October1.1%0.7%0.5%0.2%
November0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
December0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%

Neighboring states

  • Nevada: arrives late August, in the same week than California
  • Utah: arrives late August, in the same week than California
  • Arizona: arrives late August, in the same week than California
  • Oregon: arrives mid August, 1 week earlier than California

Common questions

When do Pectoral Sandpipers arrive in California?
Pectoral Sandpipers mostly pass through California: they arrive in late August, peak in late September (1.4% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of October.
When do Pectoral Sandpipers leave California?
Most Pectoral Sandpipers have left California by the second week of October, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Pectoral Sandpiper in California?
The Pectoral Sandpiper is reported most often in late September, on about 1.4% of California checklists.
Where in California are Pectoral Sandpipers seen most often?
By county, Colusa County, Del Norte County, and Yuba County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Pectoral Sandpiper (counties with at least 200 checklists).