WhenToBird

Spinus pinus · Fringillidae

When Do Pine Siskins Arrive in Washington?

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

Pine Siskins are in Washington all year, but most are here in spring: numbers build from the second week of March, peak in the second week of April (21% of checklists), and fall back by late May. In the quietest week (mid September) they are still on about 6.3% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildMar 8-14the second week of March
PeakApr 8-14the second week of April
Fall back byMay 22-31late May
FewestSep 15-21mid September

Best: the second week of April. Here all year; numbers build from the second week of March and fall back by late May. Peak: on about 21% of Washington checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novcommon
  12. Deccommon

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

0%10%20%30%Jan 1-7: 14% of 41928 checklistsJan 8-14: 13% of 31152 checklistsJan 15-21: 11% of 31753 checklistsJan 22-31: 9.8% of 42530 checklistsFeb 1-7: 11% of 29739 checklistsFeb 8-14: 12% of 32746 checklistsFeb 15-21: 11% of 40328 checklistsFeb 22-28: 12% of 28432 checklistsMar 1-7: 14% of 30758 checklistsMar 8-14: 15% of 29368 checklistsMar 15-21: 17% of 32580 checklistsMar 22-31: 19% of 45614 checklistsApr 1-7: 21% of 33997 checklistsApr 8-14: 22% of 34729 checklistsApr 15-21: 22% of 38474 checklistsApr 22-30: 21% of 52185 checklistsMay 1-7: 20% of 44236 checklistsMay 8-14: 18% of 48708 checklistsMay 15-21: 16% of 41742 checklistsMay 22-31: 15% of 57082 checklistsJun 1-7: 13% of 39193 checklistsJun 8-14: 12% of 36042 checklistsJun 15-21: 12% of 34003 checklistsJun 22-30: 12% of 39711 checklistsJul 1-7: 12% of 31949 checklistsJul 8-14: 12% of 29086 checklistsJul 15-21: 12% of 28045 checklistsJul 22-31: 11% of 38275 checklistsAug 1-7: 11% of 28846 checklistsAug 8-14: 9.9% of 28036 checklistsAug 15-21: 8.5% of 27614 checklistsAug 22-31: 7.8% of 40356 checklistsSep 1-7: 6.9% of 31214 checklistsSep 8-14: 5.9% of 27795 checklistsSep 15-21: 6.2% of 29677 checklistsSep 22-30: 6.6% of 35241 checklistsOct 1-7: 7.1% of 28605 checklistsOct 8-14: 7.5% of 28655 checklistsOct 15-21: 8.9% of 24643 checklistsOct 22-31: 10% of 34874 checklistsNov 1-7: 10% of 25658 checklistsNov 8-14: 11% of 25700 checklistsNov 15-21: 12% of 24331 checklistsNov 22-30: 14% of 32784 checklistsDec 1-7: 14% of 24099 checklistsDec 8-14: 15% of 23339 checklistsDec 15-21: 14% of 27666 checklistsDec 22-31: 14% of 42130 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 Washington 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 Washington

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Jefferson CountyBest the second week of May · 1433 checklists that week, 59,663 in all36%
  2. Pend Oreille CountyBest early August · 82 checklists that week, 3,664 in all36%
  3. Ferry CountyBest mid April · 111 checklists that week, 5,106 in all36%
  4. Kitsap CountyBest late April · 2317 checklists that week, 74,545 in all34%
  5. Thurston CountyBest the second week of April · 1412 checklists that week, 68,352 in all32%
  6. San Juan CountyBest early May · 903 checklists that week, 35,337 in all30%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Hillcrest ParkSkagit County, best mid April · 20 checklists that week, 557 in all96%
  2. Burton Acres ParkKing County, best the second week of April · 22 checklists that week, 642 in all90%
  3. Licton Springs ParkKing County, best the second week of March · 28 checklists that week, 1,151 in all84%
  4. Bitter LakeKing County, best late April · 233 checklists that week, 11,496 in all83%

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

Best time of day

In Washington, the Pine Siskin is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (19% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%20%12 am: too few checklists (796) to judge1 am: too few checklists (776) to judge2 am: too few checklists (709) to judge3 am: too few checklists (901) to judge4 am: too few checklists (3221) to judge5 am: too few checklists (16576) to judge6 am: 19% of 56744 checklists7 am: 19% of 133294 checklists8 am: 18% of 184196 checklists9 am: 15% of 186303 checklists10 am: 14% of 177063 checklists11 am: 12% of 154936 checklists12 pm: 12% of 138061 checklists1 pm: 11% of 127449 checklists2 pm: 9.9% of 121511 checklists3 pm: 8.7% of 107793 checklists4 pm: 8.6% of 82862 checklists5 pm: 9.8% of 57183 checklists6 pm: 9.6% of 39886 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (26969) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (12427) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (3658) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1500) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (834) 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
January14%13%11%9.8%
February11%12%11%12%
March14%15%17%19%
April21%22%22%21%
May20%18%16%15%
June13%12%12%12%
July12%12%12%11%
August11%9.9%8.5%7.8%
September6.9%5.9%6.2%6.6%
October7.1%7.5%8.9%10%
November10%11%12%14%
December14%15%14%14%

Neighboring states

  • Oregon: arrives mid March, 1 week later than Washington
  • Idaho: arrives mid May, 9 weeks later than Washington
  • Montana: arrives mid May, 9 weeks later than Washington
  • Nevada: arrives late September, 22 weeks earlier than Washington

Common questions

When do Pine Siskins arrive in Washington?
Pine Siskins are in Washington all year, but most are here in spring: numbers build from the second week of March, peak in the second week of April (21% of checklists), and fall back by late May. In the quietest week (mid September) they are still on about 6.3% of checklists.
When do Pine Siskins leave Washington?
Pine Siskins never fully leave Washington: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by late May, but some are still reported in every week, about 6.3% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Pine Siskin in Washington?
The Pine Siskin is reported most often in the second week of April, on about 21% of Washington checklists.
Where in Washington are Pine Siskins seen most often?
By county, Jefferson County, Pend Oreille County, and Ferry County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Pine Siskin (counties with at least 200 checklists).