WhenToBird

Spinus pinus · Fringillidae

When Do Pine Siskins Arrive in California?

Adult Pine Siskin
Photo: Dominique Bérubé, CC0 1.0 via iNaturalist

Pine Siskins are winter birds in California: the first arrive in late September, they are common by mid October, peak in mid March (5.1% of checklists), and most are gone by early May.

When to look

First arrivalsSep 22-30late September
Common byOct 15-21mid October
PeakMar 15-21mid March
Most gone byMay 1-7early May

Best: mid March. First arrivals late September; most are gone by early May. Peak: on about 5.1% of California checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maycommon
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novcommon
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%2%4%6%Jan 1-7: 4.2% of 112336 checklistsJan 8-14: 4.3% of 85518 checklistsJan 15-21: 4.1% of 86488 checklistsJan 22-31: 4.4% of 116174 checklistsFeb 1-7: 4.6% of 75171 checklistsFeb 8-14: 5.3% of 84467 checklistsFeb 15-21: 4.5% of 105683 checklistsFeb 22-28: 4.5% of 83396 checklistsMar 1-7: 4.8% of 77470 checklistsMar 8-14: 4.9% of 75180 checklistsMar 15-21: 5.1% of 80770 checklistsMar 22-31: 5.2% of 114116 checklistsApr 1-7: 4.8% of 84057 checklistsApr 8-14: 4.4% of 83692 checklistsApr 15-21: 4.0% of 89242 checklistsApr 22-30: 3.2% of 114289 checklistsMay 1-7: 2.6% of 85728 checklistsMay 8-14: 2.3% of 91984 checklistsMay 15-21: 2.3% of 75478 checklistsMay 22-31: 2.4% of 106250 checklistsJun 1-7: 2.4% of 70051 checklistsJun 8-14: 2.3% of 67485 checklistsJun 15-21: 2.3% of 66269 checklistsJun 22-30: 2.4% of 79172 checklistsJul 1-7: 2.2% of 62877 checklistsJul 8-14: 2.1% of 60328 checklistsJul 15-21: 1.9% of 59705 checklistsJul 22-31: 1.8% of 83796 checklistsAug 1-7: 1.5% of 60215 checklistsAug 8-14: 1.4% of 60172 checklistsAug 15-21: 1.2% of 59877 checklistsAug 22-31: 1.1% of 89107 checklistsSep 1-7: 1.2% of 72000 checklistsSep 8-14: 1.2% of 71228 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.3% of 76808 checklistsSep 22-30: 1.6% of 100204 checklistsOct 1-7: 2.1% of 76571 checklistsOct 8-14: 2.1% of 80874 checklistsOct 15-21: 2.7% of 74581 checklistsOct 22-31: 3.1% of 97498 checklistsNov 1-7: 3.7% of 70851 checklistsNov 8-14: 3.7% of 72431 checklistsNov 15-21: 3.6% of 66767 checklistsNov 22-30: 3.8% of 94737 checklistsDec 1-7: 3.8% of 65393 checklistsDec 8-14: 4.0% of 67449 checklistsDec 15-21: 4.2% of 83421 checklistsDec 22-31: 3.6% 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. Mendocino CountyBest early March · 721 checklists that week, 47,934 in all20%
  2. Alpine CountyBest late July · 415 checklists that week, 6,013 in all19%
  3. Humboldt CountyBest early December · 1550 checklists that week, 95,963 in all17%
  4. Sierra CountyBest early July · 388 checklists that week, 8,945 in all16%
  5. Madera CountyBest the second week of February · 263 checklists that week, 11,452 in all15%
  6. Trinity CountyBest late March · 234 checklists that week, 9,037 in all14%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Sweet Springs Marsh (Redfield Woods (historical))San Luis Obispo County, best mid November · 22 checklists that week, 100 in all85%
  2. Little ValleyMono County, best the second week of August · 20 checklists that week, 289 in all76%
  3. Laguna de las TrancasSanta Cruz County, best early June · 22 checklists that week, 165 in all74%
  4. Lake FreySolano County, best late April · 22 checklists that week, 159 in all71%
  5. Mill PondMarin County, best mid June · 29 checklists that week, 1,039 in all65%

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

Best time of day

In California, the Pine Siskin is most often listed on checklists started between 7 and 9 am (4.4% of those checklists).

0%2%4%6%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: 3.5% of 186053 checklists7 am: 4.6% of 444086 checklists8 am: 4.3% of 535846 checklists9 am: 3.9% of 486061 checklists10 am: 3.4% of 411130 checklists11 am: 3.0% of 325798 checklists12 pm: 2.9% of 269132 checklists1 pm: 2.8% of 244762 checklists2 pm: 2.6% of 235420 checklists3 pm: 2.3% of 232365 checklists4 pm: 1.7% of 208688 checklists5 pm: 1.5% of 146104 checklists6 pm: 1.1% 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
January4.2%4.3%4.1%4.4%
February4.6%5.3%4.5%4.5%
March4.8%4.9%5.1%5.2%
April4.8%4.4%4.0%3.2%
May2.6%2.3%2.3%2.4%
June2.4%2.3%2.3%2.4%
July2.2%2.1%1.9%1.8%
August1.5%1.4%1.2%1.1%
September1.2%1.2%1.3%1.6%
October2.1%2.1%2.7%3.1%
November3.7%3.7%3.6%3.8%
December3.8%4.0%4.2%3.6%

Neighboring states

  • Nevada: arrives late September, in the same week than California
  • Utah: arrives late April, 20 weeks earlier than California
  • Arizona: arrives late September, in the same week than California
  • Oregon: arrives mid March, 23 weeks later than California

Common questions

When do Pine Siskins arrive in California?
Pine Siskins are winter birds in California: the first arrive in late September, they are common by mid October, peak in mid March (5.1% of checklists), and most are gone by early May.
When do Pine Siskins leave California?
Most Pine Siskins have left California by early May, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until early August.
When is the best time to see a Pine Siskin in California?
The Pine Siskin is reported most often in mid March, on about 5.1% of California checklists.
Where in California are Pine Siskins seen most often?
By county, Mendocino County, Alpine County, and Humboldt County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Pine Siskin (counties with at least 200 checklists).