WhenToBird

Dryocopus pileatus · Picidae

When Do Pileated Woodpeckers Arrive in Arkansas?

Adult male Pileated Woodpecker
Photo: Marcel_Pepin, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

The Pileated Woodpecker is in Arkansas all year. It turns up on about 23% of checklists at its peak (mid September) and on 11% in its quietest week (mid January).

When to look

PresentAll year
Peak weekSep 15-21mid September
Quietest weekJan 15-21mid January

Best: mid September. Here all year. Peak: on about 23% of Arkansas checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maycommon
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novcommon
  12. Deccommon

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

0%10%20%30%Jan 1-7: 12% of 5292 checklistsJan 8-14: 10% of 4085 checklistsJan 15-21: 11% of 4531 checklistsJan 22-31: 11% of 6500 checklistsFeb 1-7: 12% of 4752 checklistsFeb 8-14: 11% of 5385 checklistsFeb 15-21: 10% of 7219 checklistsFeb 22-28: 13% of 4163 checklistsMar 1-7: 13% of 3952 checklistsMar 8-14: 14% of 4067 checklistsMar 15-21: 15% of 4446 checklistsMar 22-31: 16% of 6911 checklistsApr 1-7: 15% of 5422 checklistsApr 8-14: 18% of 6043 checklistsApr 15-21: 16% of 6759 checklistsApr 22-30: 16% of 10236 checklistsMay 1-7: 16% of 8243 checklistsMay 8-14: 16% of 7467 checklistsMay 15-21: 16% of 6160 checklistsMay 22-31: 17% of 7287 checklistsJun 1-7: 13% of 4884 checklistsJun 8-14: 12% of 4444 checklistsJun 15-21: 13% of 3579 checklistsJun 22-30: 11% of 3858 checklistsJul 1-7: 13% of 3042 checklistsJul 8-14: 12% of 2889 checklistsJul 15-21: 12% of 2599 checklistsJul 22-31: 15% of 3825 checklistsAug 1-7: 14% of 2951 checklistsAug 8-14: 16% of 2765 checklistsAug 15-21: 15% of 2838 checklistsAug 22-31: 17% of 4360 checklistsSep 1-7: 19% of 3573 checklistsSep 8-14: 22% of 3314 checklistsSep 15-21: 24% of 3118 checklistsSep 22-30: 22% of 4381 checklistsOct 1-7: 21% of 3640 checklistsOct 8-14: 19% of 4119 checklistsOct 15-21: 16% of 3810 checklistsOct 22-31: 15% of 4956 checklistsNov 1-7: 14% of 3704 checklistsNov 8-14: 15% of 3678 checklistsNov 15-21: 14% of 3457 checklistsNov 22-30: 14% of 4648 checklistsDec 1-7: 13% of 3390 checklistsDec 8-14: 13% of 3510 checklistsDec 15-21: 12% of 4540 checklistsDec 22-31: 14% of 6404 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 Arkansas 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 Arkansas

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Grant CountyBest the second week of September · 17 checklists that week, 1,258 in all78%
  2. Van Buren CountyBest the second week of March · 10 checklists that week, 895 in all72%
  3. Carroll CountyBest late September · 51 checklists that week, 3,417 in all63%
  4. Izard CountyBest mid November · 13 checklists that week, 788 in all62%
  5. Stone CountyBest the second week of November · 25 checklists that week, 1,336 in all59%
  6. Newton CountyBest late November · 12 checklists that week, 1,782 in all58%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Shores LakeFranklin County, best mid March · 22 checklists that week, 100 in all76%
  2. Siloam Springs LakeBenton County, best the second week of October · 21 checklists that week, 678 in all70%
  3. Devil's Den State ParkWashington County, best early October · 21 checklists that week, 319 in all66%
  4. Pinnacle Mountain State ParkPulaski County, best late March · 25 checklists that week, 323 in all63%
  5. Logoly State ParkColumbia County, best the second week of September · 21 checklists that week, 1,288 in all61%
  6. Lake BalboaGarland County, best early April · 24 checklists that week, 736 in all61%

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

Best time of day

In Arkansas, the Pileated Woodpecker is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (22% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%12 am: too few checklists (98) to judge1 am: too few checklists (88) to judge2 am: too few checklists (95) to judge3 am: too few checklists (94) to judge4 am: too few checklists (145) to judge5 am: too few checklists (1455) to judge6 am: 23% of 10807 checklists7 am: 22% of 27761 checklists8 am: 19% of 30943 checklists9 am: 15% of 26975 checklists10 am: 13% of 21989 checklists11 am: 11% of 16828 checklists12 pm: 12% of 14069 checklists1 pm: 11% of 13145 checklists2 pm: 10% of 12780 checklists3 pm: 12% of 12723 checklists4 pm: 11% of 12500 checklists5 pm: 12% of 9576 checklists6 pm: 11% of 7182 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (4187) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (1314) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (245) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (122) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (75) 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
January12%10%11%11%
February12%11%10%13%
March13%14%15%16%
April15%18%16%16%
May16%16%16%17%
June13%12%13%11%
July13%12%12%15%
August14%16%15%17%
September19%22%24%22%
October21%19%16%15%
November14%15%14%14%
December13%13%12%14%

Neighboring states

  • Missouri: year-round, peaks mid September
  • Oklahoma: year-round, peaks the second week of September
  • Kansas: all year, most in spring, peaks the second week of May
  • Mississippi: all year, most in fall, peaks late September

Common questions

When do Pileated Woodpeckers arrive in Arkansas?
The Pileated Woodpecker is in Arkansas all year. It turns up on about 23% of checklists at its peak (mid September) and on 11% in its quietest week (mid January).
When do Pileated Woodpeckers leave Arkansas?
The Pileated Woodpecker does not leave Arkansas: it is reported all year, from 11% of checklists in mid January to 23% in mid September.
When is the best time to see a Pileated Woodpecker in Arkansas?
The Pileated Woodpecker is reported most often in mid September, on about 23% of Arkansas checklists.
Where in Arkansas are Pileated Woodpeckers seen most often?
By county, Grant County, Van Buren County, and Carroll County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Pileated Woodpecker (counties with at least 200 checklists).