WhenToBird

Haemorhous purpureus · Fringillidae

When Do Purple Finches Arrive in California?

Adult Purple Finch
Photo: Dani Alba, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Purple Finches reach California in mid September, are common by the second week of October, peak in early June (8.3% of checklists), and most are gone by early August.

When to look

First arrivalsSep 15-21mid September
Common byOct 8-14the second week of October
PeakJun 1-7early June
Most gone byAug 1-7early August

Best: early June. First arrivals mid September; most are gone by early August. Peak: on about 8.3% of California checklists.

  1. Januncommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octuncommon
  11. Novuncommon
  12. Decuncommon

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

0%5%10%Jan 1-7: 2.8% of 112336 checklistsJan 8-14: 2.8% of 85518 checklistsJan 15-21: 2.6% of 86488 checklistsJan 22-31: 2.9% of 116174 checklistsFeb 1-7: 3.1% of 75171 checklistsFeb 8-14: 3.3% of 84467 checklistsFeb 15-21: 3.3% of 105683 checklistsFeb 22-28: 4.2% of 83396 checklistsMar 1-7: 4.7% of 77470 checklistsMar 8-14: 5.3% of 75180 checklistsMar 15-21: 6.1% of 80770 checklistsMar 22-31: 6.7% of 114116 checklistsApr 1-7: 6.8% of 84057 checklistsApr 8-14: 6.6% of 83692 checklistsApr 15-21: 6.5% of 89242 checklistsApr 22-30: 6.0% of 114289 checklistsMay 1-7: 6.4% of 85728 checklistsMay 8-14: 6.6% of 91984 checklistsMay 15-21: 7.5% of 75478 checklistsMay 22-31: 8.2% of 106250 checklistsJun 1-7: 8.7% of 70051 checklistsJun 8-14: 8.1% of 67485 checklistsJun 15-21: 7.8% of 66269 checklistsJun 22-30: 7.6% of 79172 checklistsJul 1-7: 6.8% of 62877 checklistsJul 8-14: 5.7% of 60328 checklistsJul 15-21: 4.5% of 59705 checklistsJul 22-31: 3.4% of 83796 checklistsAug 1-7: 2.5% of 60215 checklistsAug 8-14: 2.3% of 60172 checklistsAug 15-21: 1.9% of 59877 checklistsAug 22-31: 1.8% of 89107 checklistsSep 1-7: 2.0% of 72000 checklistsSep 8-14: 1.9% of 71228 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.9% of 76808 checklistsSep 22-30: 2.3% of 100204 checklistsOct 1-7: 2.6% of 76571 checklistsOct 8-14: 2.5% of 80874 checklistsOct 15-21: 3.0% of 74581 checklistsOct 22-31: 3.1% of 97498 checklistsNov 1-7: 2.9% of 70851 checklistsNov 8-14: 2.9% of 72431 checklistsNov 15-21: 2.7% of 66767 checklistsNov 22-30: 2.7% of 94737 checklistsDec 1-7: 2.9% of 65393 checklistsDec 8-14: 3.1% of 67449 checklistsDec 15-21: 3.3% of 83421 checklistsDec 22-31: 2.8% 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. Santa Cruz CountyBest the second week of June · 2237 checklists that week, 140,819 in all27%
  2. Marin CountyBest the second week of June · 2478 checklists that week, 135,728 in all26%
  3. San Mateo CountyBest late May · 3863 checklists that week, 148,781 in all25%
  4. Humboldt CountyBest the second week of June · 1714 checklists that week, 95,963 in all23%
  5. San Francisco CountyBest the second week of June · 1901 checklists that week, 130,018 in all23%
  6. Plumas CountyBest the second week of April · 605 checklists that week, 24,629 in all22%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. East Richmond HeightsContra Costa County, best late June · 21 checklists that week, 318 in all95%
  2. Palmer CreekHumboldt County, best late May · 34 checklists that week, 796 in all85%
  3. Lake FreySolano County, best late April · 22 checklists that week, 159 in all83%
  4. Burleigh H. Murray RanchSan Mateo County, best late March · 62 checklists that week, 1,656 in all83%
  5. City of Arcata OpenspaceHumboldt County, best mid April · 21 checklists that week, 586 in all81%
  6. Swanton Pacific RanchSanta Cruz County, best late May · 21 checklists that week, 205 in all80%

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

Best time of day

In California, the Purple Finch is most often listed on checklists started between 7 and 9 am (6.0% of those checklists).

0%2%4%6%8%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: 5.6% of 186053 checklists7 am: 6.1% of 444086 checklists8 am: 5.9% of 535846 checklists9 am: 5.6% of 486061 checklists10 am: 4.3% of 411130 checklists11 am: 3.7% of 325798 checklists12 pm: 3.3% of 269132 checklists1 pm: 2.9% of 244762 checklists2 pm: 2.7% of 235420 checklists3 pm: 2.5% of 232365 checklists4 pm: 2.4% of 208688 checklists5 pm: 2.8% of 146104 checklists6 pm: 2.8% 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
January2.8%2.8%2.6%2.9%
February3.1%3.3%3.3%4.2%
March4.7%5.3%6.1%6.7%
April6.8%6.6%6.5%6.0%
May6.4%6.6%7.5%8.2%
June8.7%8.1%7.8%7.6%
July6.8%5.7%4.5%3.4%
August2.5%2.3%1.9%1.8%
September2.0%1.9%1.9%2.3%
October2.6%2.5%3.0%3.1%
November2.9%2.9%2.7%2.7%
December2.9%3.1%3.3%2.8%

Neighboring states

  • Oregon: arrives the second week of February, 19 weeks later than California
  • Washington: arrives early April, 22 weeks earlier than California
  • South Dakota: arrives mid October, 4 weeks later than California
  • Oklahoma: arrives the second week of November, 7 weeks later than California

Common questions

When do Purple Finches arrive in California?
Purple Finches reach California in mid September, are common by the second week of October, peak in early June (8.3% of checklists), and most are gone by early August.
When do Purple Finches leave California?
Most Purple Finches have left California by early August, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until the second week of August.
When is the best time to see a Purple Finch in California?
The Purple Finch is reported most often in early June, on about 8.3% of California checklists.
Where in California are Purple Finches seen most often?
By county, Santa Cruz County, Marin County, and San Mateo County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Purple Finch (counties with at least 200 checklists).