WhenToBird

Spinus pinus · Fringillidae

When Do Pine Siskins Arrive in Idaho?

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

Pine Siskins are in Idaho all year, but most are here in summer: numbers build from mid May, peak in mid July (20% of checklists), and fall back by early September. In the quietest week (the second week of December) they are still on about 7.1% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildMay 15-21mid May
PeakJul 15-21mid July
Fall back bySep 1-7early September
FewestDec 8-14the second week of December

Best: mid July. Here all year; numbers build from mid May and fall back by early September. Peak: on about 20% of Idaho checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maycommon
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novcommon
  12. Decuncommon

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

0%10%20%30%Jan 1-7: 7.8% of 9357 checklistsJan 8-14: 8.8% of 6408 checklistsJan 15-21: 8.4% of 6358 checklistsJan 22-31: 8.4% of 8601 checklistsFeb 1-7: 8.7% of 5611 checklistsFeb 8-14: 11% of 6090 checklistsFeb 15-21: 11% of 7973 checklistsFeb 22-28: 10% of 5866 checklistsMar 1-7: 11% of 6144 checklistsMar 8-14: 10% of 6456 checklistsMar 15-21: 9.7% of 6786 checklistsMar 22-31: 9.6% of 9539 checklistsApr 1-7: 11% of 7202 checklistsApr 8-14: 11% of 7608 checklistsApr 15-21: 11% of 8069 checklistsApr 22-30: 12% of 10973 checklistsMay 1-7: 12% of 9481 checklistsMay 8-14: 14% of 11318 checklistsMay 15-21: 15% of 9141 checklistsMay 22-31: 15% of 13984 checklistsJun 1-7: 15% of 8897 checklistsJun 8-14: 14% of 8504 checklistsJun 15-21: 16% of 8078 checklistsJun 22-30: 17% of 9665 checklistsJul 1-7: 19% of 7144 checklistsJul 8-14: 19% of 6557 checklistsJul 15-21: 21% of 6430 checklistsJul 22-31: 20% of 8696 checklistsAug 1-7: 18% of 5896 checklistsAug 8-14: 17% of 5643 checklistsAug 15-21: 16% of 6151 checklistsAug 22-31: 14% of 7863 checklistsSep 1-7: 14% of 5769 checklistsSep 8-14: 14% of 5646 checklistsSep 15-21: 12% of 5460 checklistsSep 22-30: 14% of 6363 checklistsOct 1-7: 14% of 4980 checklistsOct 8-14: 12% of 5096 checklistsOct 15-21: 12% of 4878 checklistsOct 22-31: 11% of 6426 checklistsNov 1-7: 8.0% of 4822 checklistsNov 8-14: 8.0% of 4999 checklistsNov 15-21: 8.7% of 4601 checklistsNov 22-30: 7.4% of 6027 checklistsDec 1-7: 7.8% of 4180 checklistsDec 8-14: 6.6% of 4775 checklistsDec 15-21: 7.1% of 6522 checklistsDec 22-31: 8.2% of 7792 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 Idaho 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 Idaho

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Adams CountyBest mid July · 138 checklists that week, 5,826 in all69%
  2. Shoshone CountyBest late August · 84 checklists that week, 2,886 in all58%
  3. Boundary CountyBest the second week of July · 153 checklists that week, 6,362 in all49%
  4. Bonner CountyBest late July · 318 checklists that week, 10,972 in all44%
  5. Teton CountyBest late May · 259 checklists that week, 6,406 in all39%
  6. Cassia CountyBest mid July · 322 checklists that week, 9,223 in all38%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Sawtooth National ForestCassia County, best mid July · 53 checklists that week, 885 in all76%
  2. Sawtooth National Forest (Little Fork Spring)Cassia County, best the second week of July · 23 checklists that week, 406 in all63%
  3. Fall CreekValley County, best mid June · 22 checklists that week, 539 in all60%
  4. Aldape SummitAda County, best late May · 30 checklists that week, 210 in all60%
  5. Bogus Basin State ParkBoise County, best late July · 27 checklists that week, 339 in all54%

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

Best time of day

In Idaho, the Pine Siskin is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (21% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%12 am: too few checklists (180) to judge1 am: too few checklists (176) to judge2 am: too few checklists (169) to judge3 am: too few checklists (164) to judge4 am: too few checklists (450) to judge5 am: too few checklists (2270) to judge6 am: 24% of 9122 checklists7 am: 20% of 22204 checklists8 am: 21% of 38672 checklists9 am: 14% of 38930 checklists10 am: 12% of 37338 checklists11 am: 10% of 33508 checklists12 pm: 10% of 28544 checklists1 pm: 8.7% of 25774 checklists2 pm: 8.3% of 24296 checklists3 pm: 7.8% of 21784 checklists4 pm: 8.9% of 19051 checklists5 pm: 9.7% of 14150 checklists6 pm: 11% of 10014 checklists7 pm: 9.1% of 7495 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (4352) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1449) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (525) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (208) 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
January7.8%8.8%8.4%8.4%
February8.7%11%11%10%
March11%10%9.7%9.6%
April11%11%11%12%
May12%14%15%15%
June15%14%16%17%
July19%19%21%20%
August18%17%16%14%
September14%14%12%14%
October14%12%12%11%
November8.0%8.0%8.7%7.4%
December7.8%6.6%7.1%8.2%

Neighboring states

  • Montana: arrives mid May, in the same week than Idaho
  • Utah: arrives late April, 3 weeks earlier than Idaho
  • Oregon: arrives mid March, 8 weeks earlier than Idaho
  • Washington: arrives the second week of March, 9 weeks earlier than Idaho

Common questions

When do Pine Siskins arrive in Idaho?
Pine Siskins are in Idaho all year, but most are here in summer: numbers build from mid May, peak in mid July (20% of checklists), and fall back by early September. In the quietest week (the second week of December) they are still on about 7.1% of checklists.
When do Pine Siskins leave Idaho?
Pine Siskins never fully leave Idaho: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by early September, but some are still reported in every week, about 7.1% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Pine Siskin in Idaho?
The Pine Siskin is reported most often in mid July, on about 20% of Idaho checklists.
Where in Idaho are Pine Siskins seen most often?
By county, Adams County, Shoshone County, and Boundary County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Pine Siskin (counties with at least 200 checklists).