WhenToBird

Falco peregrinus · Falconidae

When Do Peregrine Falcons Arrive in New Jersey?

Adult Peregrine Falcon
Photo: Andrea Poggi, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Peregrine Falcons are winter birds in New Jersey: the first arrive in early July, they are common by mid August, peak in early October (10% of checklists), and most are gone by mid November.

When to look

First arrivalsJul 1-7early July
Common byAug 15-21mid August
PeakOct 1-7early October
Most gone byNov 15-21mid November

Best: early October. First arrivals early July; most are gone by mid November. Peak: on about 10% of New Jersey checklists.

  1. Januncommon
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Marrare
  4. Aprrare
  5. Mayrare
  6. Junrare
  7. Juluncommon
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novcommon
  12. Decuncommon

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

0%5%10%15%Jan 1-7: 1.9% of 28167 checklistsJan 8-14: 2.0% of 20583 checklistsJan 15-21: 2.0% of 19739 checklistsJan 22-31: 2.1% of 24586 checklistsFeb 1-7: 1.7% of 17226 checklistsFeb 8-14: 1.9% of 19567 checklistsFeb 15-21: 1.3% of 26553 checklistsFeb 22-28: 1.5% of 19046 checklistsMar 1-7: 1.7% of 17969 checklistsMar 8-14: 1.3% of 18976 checklistsMar 15-21: 1.4% of 18581 checklistsMar 22-31: 1.3% of 27590 checklistsApr 1-7: 1.1% of 21202 checklistsApr 8-14: 1.2% of 23609 checklistsApr 15-21: 1.1% of 25056 checklistsApr 22-30: 1.1% of 36679 checklistsMay 1-7: 1.2% of 38378 checklistsMay 8-14: 1.1% of 44071 checklistsMay 15-21: 1.1% of 34076 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.8% of 32558 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.8% of 18049 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.8% of 15597 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.9% of 14894 checklistsJun 22-30: 1.0% of 17187 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.8% of 13406 checklistsJul 8-14: 1.1% of 12550 checklistsJul 15-21: 1.2% of 12358 checklistsJul 22-31: 1.7% of 18382 checklistsAug 1-7: 2.2% of 13689 checklistsAug 8-14: 2.3% of 14006 checklistsAug 15-21: 2.8% of 14483 checklistsAug 22-31: 3.1% of 23182 checklistsSep 1-7: 3.9% of 17984 checklistsSep 8-14: 4.6% of 18320 checklistsSep 15-21: 6.3% of 20491 checklistsSep 22-30: 8.9% of 26176 checklistsOct 1-7: 11% of 24112 checklistsOct 8-14: 11% of 24603 checklistsOct 15-21: 7.8% of 24549 checklistsOct 22-31: 6.0% of 26206 checklistsNov 1-7: 3.7% of 17469 checklistsNov 8-14: 3.6% of 15102 checklistsNov 15-21: 3.2% of 14958 checklistsNov 22-30: 2.2% of 19447 checklistsDec 1-7: 1.9% of 14017 checklistsDec 8-14: 2.1% of 14625 checklistsDec 15-21: 2.0% of 16937 checklistsDec 22-31: 1.8% of 26651 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 New Jersey 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 New Jersey

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Cape May CountyBest early October · 9256 checklists that week, 189,832 in all20%
  2. Bergen CountyBest mid September · 1538 checklists that week, 73,457 in all13%
  3. Atlantic CountyBest early October · 506 checklists that week, 28,208 in all11%
  4. Ocean CountyBest the second week of October · 1325 checklists that week, 87,340 in all7.0%
  5. Hudson CountyBest mid November · 366 checklists that week, 21,191 in all6.9%
  6. Warren CountyBest mid January · 357 checklists that week, 20,077 in all5.6%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Palisades ParkBergen County, best early March · 34 checklists that week, 2,765 in all85%
  2. Boonton ReservoirMorris County, best late December · 21 checklists that week, 754 in all58%
  3. Cape May Point State Park (southwest)Cape May County, best early October · 972 checklists that week, 9,860 in all52%
  4. Upper Township 1Cape May County, best early April · 20 checklists that week, 153 in all44%
  5. Washington Valley ParkSomerset County, best late October · 48 checklists that week, 1,255 in all41%
  6. Brigantine National Wilderness AreaOcean County, best the second week of October · 28 checklists that week, 903 in all38%

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

Best time of day

In New Jersey, the Peregrine Falcon is most often listed on checklists started between 10 am and 12 pm (3.1% of those checklists).

0%1%2%3%4%12 am: too few checklists (746) to judge1 am: too few checklists (640) to judge2 am: too few checklists (606) to judge3 am: too few checklists (755) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1681) to judge5 am: too few checklists (11258) to judge6 am: 3.5% of 50447 checklists7 am: 2.9% of 118312 checklists8 am: 2.5% of 123273 checklists9 am: 2.9% of 107783 checklists10 am: 3.2% of 97537 checklists11 am: 3.0% of 82427 checklists12 pm: 2.7% of 72581 checklists1 pm: 2.9% of 71478 checklists2 pm: 2.8% of 69994 checklists3 pm: 2.4% of 66822 checklists4 pm: 2.4% of 55950 checklists5 pm: 2.0% of 41360 checklists6 pm: 1.4% of 28122 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (14727) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (4257) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1273) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (920) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (693) 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
January1.9%2.0%2.0%2.1%
February1.7%1.9%1.3%1.5%
March1.7%1.3%1.4%1.3%
April1.1%1.2%1.1%1.1%
May1.2%1.1%1.1%0.8%
June0.8%0.8%0.9%1.0%
July0.8%1.1%1.2%1.7%
August2.2%2.3%2.8%3.1%
September3.9%4.6%6.3%8.9%
October11%11%7.8%6.0%
November3.7%3.6%3.2%2.2%
December1.9%2.1%2.0%1.8%

Neighboring states

  • Delaware: arrives late July, 3 weeks later than New Jersey
  • Connecticut: arrives early July, in the same week than New Jersey
  • Pennsylvania: arrives late July, 3 weeks later than New Jersey
  • New York: arrives the second week of July, 1 week later than New Jersey

Common questions

When do Peregrine Falcons arrive in New Jersey?
Peregrine Falcons are winter birds in New Jersey: the first arrive in early July, they are common by mid August, peak in early October (10% of checklists), and most are gone by mid November.
When do Peregrine Falcons leave New Jersey?
Most Peregrine Falcons have left New Jersey by mid November, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until mid May.
When is the best time to see a Peregrine Falcon in New Jersey?
The Peregrine Falcon is reported most often in early October, on about 10% of New Jersey checklists.
Where in New Jersey are Peregrine Falcons seen most often?
By county, Cape May County, Bergen County, and Atlantic County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Peregrine Falcon (counties with at least 200 checklists).