WhenToBird

Charadrius melodus · Charadriidae

When Do Piping Plovers Arrive in Massachusetts?

Adult Piping Plover
Photo: Caroline Quinn, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Piping Plovers reach Massachusetts in late March, are common by mid May, peak in mid July (5.4% of checklists), and most are gone by early September.

When to look

First arrivalsMar 22-31late March
Common byMay 15-21mid May
PeakJul 15-21mid July
Most gone bySep 1-7early September

Best: mid July. First arrivals late March; most are gone by early September. Peak: on about 5.4% of Massachusetts checklists.

  1. Jannot usually seen
  2. Febnot usually seen
  3. Maruncommon
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Maycommon
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octnot usually seen
  11. Novnot usually seen
  12. Decnot usually seen

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

0%2%4%6%Jan 1-7: 0.1% of 43252 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.1% of 30096 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.1% of 28760 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.1% of 38135 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.1% of 26442 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.1% of 29034 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0% of 37383 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.1% of 29977 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.1% of 29175 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.1% of 32399 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.5% of 34444 checklistsMar 22-31: 1.2% of 49126 checklistsApr 1-7: 1.4% of 36456 checklistsApr 8-14: 1.6% of 40908 checklistsApr 15-21: 1.4% of 42078 checklistsApr 22-30: 1.3% of 56465 checklistsMay 1-7: 1.3% of 56994 checklistsMay 8-14: 1.6% of 64079 checklistsMay 15-21: 1.8% of 52020 checklistsMay 22-31: 2.7% of 55402 checklistsJun 1-7: 3.4% of 30682 checklistsJun 8-14: 3.5% of 27557 checklistsJun 15-21: 3.9% of 26163 checklistsJun 22-30: 4.4% of 29576 checklistsJul 1-7: 4.7% of 23931 checklistsJul 8-14: 5.0% of 22389 checklistsJul 15-21: 5.6% of 22365 checklistsJul 22-31: 5.5% of 32631 checklistsAug 1-7: 4.7% of 25133 checklistsAug 8-14: 4.6% of 24610 checklistsAug 15-21: 4.5% of 25350 checklistsAug 22-31: 2.8% of 37198 checklistsSep 1-7: 1.6% of 27402 checklistsSep 8-14: 1.0% of 27700 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.5% of 28398 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.3% of 34646 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.2% of 28620 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.1% of 30144 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.1% of 28893 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.1% of 38869 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.1% of 29782 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.1% of 27582 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.1% of 26642 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.1% of 34390 checklistsDec 1-7: 0% of 25164 checklistsDec 8-14: 0% of 24892 checklistsDec 15-21: 0% of 29022 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.1% of 44323 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 Massachusetts 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 Massachusetts

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Dukes CountyBest the second week of July · 467 checklists that week, 23,670 in all16%
  2. Barnstable CountyBest mid July · 3810 checklists that week, 215,188 in all16%
  3. Nantucket CountyBest the second week of July · 350 checklists that week, 23,895 in all15%
  4. Suffolk CountyBest the second week of July · 1681 checklists that week, 112,443 in all9.2%
  5. Plymouth CountyBest late July · 1765 checklists that week, 89,282 in all8.5%
  6. Essex CountyBest late June · 3356 checklists that week, 213,973 in all7.1%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Winthrop BeachSuffolk County, best late June · 90 checklists that week, 4,942 in all94%
  2. Sandy Point State ReservationEssex County, best mid June · 71 checklists that week, 2,242 in all93%
  3. Race RunBarnstable County, best the second week of July · 56 checklists that week, 2,504 in all92%
  4. Crane Beach on the Crane EstateEssex County, best the second week of July · 38 checklists that week, 1,698 in all91%
  5. Horseneck Beach State Reservation (northwest)Bristol County, best late May · 24 checklists that week, 569 in all89%
  6. Cape Cod National SeashoreBarnstable County, best late June · 87 checklists that week, 3,402 in all89%

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

Best time of day

In Massachusetts, the Piping Plover is most often listed on checklists started between 5 and 7 pm (1.8% of those checklists).

0%1%2%3%12 am: too few checklists (630) to judge1 am: too few checklists (657) to judge2 am: too few checklists (645) to judge3 am: too few checklists (850) to judge4 am: too few checklists (3787) to judge5 am: too few checklists (29743) to judge6 am: 2.0% of 108601 checklists7 am: 1.3% of 186104 checklists8 am: 1.4% of 185905 checklists9 am: 1.4% of 166049 checklists10 am: 1.3% of 150508 checklists11 am: 1.3% of 131024 checklists12 pm: 1.2% of 116804 checklists1 pm: 1.2% of 112055 checklists2 pm: 1.1% of 110246 checklists3 pm: 1.1% of 104376 checklists4 pm: 1.3% of 83736 checklists5 pm: 1.6% of 63723 checklists6 pm: 2.0% of 41435 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (21041) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (5240) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1722) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1094) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (704) 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
January0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
February0.1%0.1%0%0.1%
March0.1%0.1%0.5%1.2%
April1.4%1.6%1.4%1.3%
May1.3%1.6%1.8%2.7%
June3.4%3.5%3.9%4.4%
July4.7%5.0%5.6%5.5%
August4.7%4.6%4.5%2.8%
September1.6%1.0%0.5%0.3%
October0.2%0.1%0.1%0.1%
November0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
December0%0%0%0.1%

Neighboring states

  • Rhode Island: arrives the second week of March, 2 weeks earlier than Massachusetts
  • Connecticut: arrives mid March, 1 week earlier than Massachusetts
  • Maine: arrives the second week of April, 2 weeks later than Massachusetts
  • New York: arrives mid May, 7 weeks later than Massachusetts

Common questions

When do Piping Plovers arrive in Massachusetts?
Piping Plovers reach Massachusetts in late March, are common by mid May, peak in mid July (5.4% of checklists), and most are gone by early September.
When do Piping Plovers leave Massachusetts?
Most Piping Plovers have left Massachusetts by early September, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until the second week of September.
When is the best time to see a Piping Plover in Massachusetts?
The Piping Plover is reported most often in mid July, on about 5.4% of Massachusetts checklists.
Where in Massachusetts are Piping Plovers seen most often?
By county, Dukes County, Barnstable County, and Nantucket County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Piping Plover (counties with at least 200 checklists).