WhenToBird

Spinus pinus · Fringillidae

When Do Pine Siskins Arrive in Texas?

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

Pine Siskins are winter birds in Texas: the first arrive in mid October, they are common by early November, peak in the second week of February (6.1% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of May.

When to look

First arrivalsOct 15-21mid October
Common byNov 1-7early November
PeakFeb 8-14the second week of February
Most gone byMay 8-14the second week of May

Best: the second week of February. First arrivals mid October; most are gone by the second week of May. Peak: on about 6.1% of Texas checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febpeak season
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Junrare
  7. Julnot usually seen
  8. Augnot usually seen
  9. Seprare
  10. Octuncommon
  11. Novcommon
  12. Deccommon

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

0%2%4%6%8%Jan 1-7: 3.9% of 66038 checklistsJan 8-14: 4.5% of 52445 checklistsJan 15-21: 5.0% of 52985 checklistsJan 22-31: 5.1% of 71020 checklistsFeb 1-7: 5.0% of 52306 checklistsFeb 8-14: 7.2% of 55887 checklistsFeb 15-21: 6.1% of 69016 checklistsFeb 22-28: 4.9% of 52998 checklistsMar 1-7: 5.2% of 50836 checklistsMar 8-14: 4.8% of 51749 checklistsMar 15-21: 4.4% of 53731 checklistsMar 22-31: 4.1% of 82049 checklistsApr 1-7: 3.5% of 65854 checklistsApr 8-14: 3.0% of 78434 checklistsApr 15-21: 2.5% of 92302 checklistsApr 22-30: 2.7% of 122878 checklistsMay 1-7: 2.7% of 74592 checklistsMay 8-14: 1.5% of 61008 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.9% of 43365 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.4% of 52736 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.1% of 31643 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.1% of 30131 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.1% of 26802 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.1% of 32822 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.1% of 27213 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.1% of 24555 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.1% of 24146 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.1% of 34536 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.1% of 25764 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.1% of 26347 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.1% of 28431 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.1% of 42838 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.1% of 35070 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.2% of 33893 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.2% of 32572 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.2% of 43771 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.4% of 34143 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.7% of 37563 checklistsOct 15-21: 1.1% of 36263 checklistsOct 22-31: 1.6% of 49170 checklistsNov 1-7: 2.4% of 43301 checklistsNov 8-14: 2.3% of 48744 checklistsNov 15-21: 3.2% of 42213 checklistsNov 22-30: 3.3% of 54455 checklistsDec 1-7: 3.4% of 40166 checklistsDec 8-14: 3.2% of 41035 checklistsDec 15-21: 3.5% of 46983 checklistsDec 22-31: 3.3% of 73015 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 Texas 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 Texas

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Irion CountyBest the second week of January · 12 checklists that week, 900 in all55%
  2. Sabine CountyBest early February · 36 checklists that week, 1,870 in all49%
  3. Jeff Davis CountyBest mid February · 319 checklists that week, 21,421 in all46%
  4. Hamilton CountyBest mid March · 65 checklists that week, 3,598 in all41%
  5. Real CountyBest late January · 114 checklists that week, 4,015 in all41%
  6. San Saba CountyBest the second week of February · 184 checklists that week, 8,042 in all38%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Davis Mountains State Park (east)Jeff Davis County, best the second week of April · 41 checklists that week, 904 in all86%
  2. Mary Jo Peckham Park For All ChildrenHarris County, best late January · 65 checklists that week, 307 in all81%
  3. Davis Mountains State ParkJeff Davis County, best mid February · 65 checklists that week, 5,202 in all75%
  4. South Llano River State Park (Crisp Hollow)Kimble County, best late February · 21 checklists that week, 825 in all67%
  5. South Llano River State ParkKimble County, best mid January · 27 checklists that week, 3,293 in all64%
  6. South Llano River State Park (east)Kimble County, best early March · 31 checklists that week, 977 in all63%

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

Best time of day

In Texas, the Pine Siskin is most often listed on checklists started between 7 and 9 am (3.6% of those checklists).

0%1%2%3%4%12 am: too few checklists (898) to judge1 am: too few checklists (756) to judge2 am: too few checklists (663) to judge3 am: too few checklists (741) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1537) to judge5 am: too few checklists (6113) to judge6 am: 2.3% of 74687 checklists7 am: 3.6% of 285131 checklists8 am: 3.6% of 329960 checklists9 am: 3.2% of 267889 checklists10 am: 2.9% of 218205 checklists11 am: 2.6% of 178879 checklists12 pm: 2.6% of 153722 checklists1 pm: 2.5% of 144662 checklists2 pm: 2.5% of 138578 checklists3 pm: 2.3% of 136878 checklists4 pm: 1.9% of 137550 checklists5 pm: 1.4% of 113599 checklists6 pm: 0.9% of 81743 checklists7 pm: 0.5% of 53396 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (17221) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (4048) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1965) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (990) 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
January3.9%4.5%5.0%5.1%
February5.0%7.2%6.1%4.9%
March5.2%4.8%4.4%4.1%
April3.5%3.0%2.5%2.7%
May2.7%1.5%0.9%0.4%
June0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
July0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
August0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
September0.1%0.2%0.2%0.2%
October0.4%0.7%1.1%1.6%
November2.4%2.3%3.2%3.3%
December3.4%3.2%3.5%3.3%

Neighboring states

  • Louisiana: arrives the second week of November, 3 weeks later than Texas
  • Oklahoma: arrives early October, 2 weeks earlier than Texas
  • Arkansas: arrives mid October, in the same week than Texas
  • Mississippi: arrives early November, 2 weeks later than Texas

Common questions

When do Pine Siskins arrive in Texas?
Pine Siskins are winter birds in Texas: the first arrive in mid October, they are common by early November, peak in the second week of February (6.1% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of May.
When do Pine Siskins leave Texas?
Most Pine Siskins have left Texas by the second week of May, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Pine Siskin in Texas?
The Pine Siskin is reported most often in the second week of February, on about 6.1% of Texas checklists.
Where in Texas are Pine Siskins seen most often?
By county, Irion County, Sabine County, and Jeff Davis County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Pine Siskin (counties with at least 200 checklists).