WhenToBird

Haemorhous purpureus · Fringillidae

When Do Purple Finches Arrive in New Jersey?

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

Purple Finches are winter birds in New Jersey: they arrive in mid September, peak in early November (9.5% of checklists), and most are gone by early May.

When to look

First arrivalsSep 15-21mid September
Common bySep 15-21mid September
PeakNov 1-7early November
Most gone byMay 1-7early May

Best: early November. First arrivals mid September; most are gone by early May. Peak: on about 9.5% of New Jersey checklists.

  1. Januncommon
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Maruncommon
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Mayrare
  6. Junnot usually seen
  7. Julnot usually seen
  8. Augnot usually seen
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Deccommon

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

0%5%10%15%Jan 1-7: 1.6% of 28167 checklistsJan 8-14: 1.6% of 20583 checklistsJan 15-21: 1.4% of 19739 checklistsJan 22-31: 1.5% of 24586 checklistsFeb 1-7: 1.7% of 17226 checklistsFeb 8-14: 1.7% of 19567 checklistsFeb 15-21: 1.6% of 26553 checklistsFeb 22-28: 1.3% of 19046 checklistsMar 1-7: 1.5% of 17969 checklistsMar 8-14: 1.3% of 18976 checklistsMar 15-21: 1.2% of 18581 checklistsMar 22-31: 1.3% of 27590 checklistsApr 1-7: 1.9% of 21202 checklistsApr 8-14: 2.4% of 23609 checklistsApr 15-21: 3.2% of 25056 checklistsApr 22-30: 2.3% of 36679 checklistsMay 1-7: 1.3% of 38378 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.6% of 44071 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.2% of 34076 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.1% of 32558 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.1% of 18049 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.1% of 15597 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.1% of 14894 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.1% of 17187 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.1% of 13406 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.1% of 12550 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.1% of 12358 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.1% of 18382 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.1% of 13689 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.1% of 14006 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.1% of 14483 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.1% of 23182 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.3% of 17984 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.6% of 18320 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.2% of 20491 checklistsSep 22-30: 1.8% of 26176 checklistsOct 1-7: 2.6% of 24112 checklistsOct 8-14: 5.1% of 24603 checklistsOct 15-21: 7.9% of 24549 checklistsOct 22-31: 11% of 26206 checklistsNov 1-7: 9.7% of 17469 checklistsNov 8-14: 7.4% of 15102 checklistsNov 15-21: 6.8% of 14958 checklistsNov 22-30: 5.1% of 19447 checklistsDec 1-7: 4.5% of 14017 checklistsDec 8-14: 4.0% of 14625 checklistsDec 15-21: 3.2% of 16937 checklistsDec 22-31: 1.9% of 26651 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 New Jersey 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 New Jersey

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Hunterdon CountyBest late October · 1382 checklists that week, 57,610 in all20%
  2. Warren CountyBest late October · 461 checklists that week, 20,077 in all20%
  3. Bergen CountyBest late October · 1776 checklists that week, 73,457 in all16%
  4. Sussex CountyBest late October · 620 checklists that week, 30,305 in all15%
  5. Somerset CountyBest late October · 1396 checklists that week, 58,057 in all14%
  6. Cape May CountyBest the second week of November · 2621 checklists that week, 189,832 in all13%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Higbee Beach Wildlife Management Area (north)Cape May County, best the second week of November · 36 checklists that week, 1,492 in all82%
  2. Hariton SanctuaryWarren County, best early November · 22 checklists that week, 411 in all71%
  3. Delaware Water Gap National Recreation AreaSussex County, best late October · 23 checklists that week, 316 in all71%
  4. Havemeyer ReservoirBergen County, best early November · 32 checklists that week, 3,689 in all51%
  5. Montclair SanctuaryEssex County, best early November · 25 checklists that week, 401 in all45%
  6. Cape May Point BeachCape May County, best late November · 105 checklists that week, 5,796 in all45%

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

Best time of day

In New Jersey, the Purple Finch is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (4.2% of those checklists).

0%2%4%6%12 am: too few checklists (746) to judge1 am: too few checklists (640) to judge2 am: too few checklists (606) to judge3 am: too few checklists (755) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1681) to judge5 am: too few checklists (11258) to judge6 am: 4.2% of 50447 checklists7 am: 4.1% of 118312 checklists8 am: 3.0% of 123273 checklists9 am: 2.4% of 107783 checklists10 am: 2.0% of 97537 checklists11 am: 1.6% of 82427 checklists12 pm: 1.4% of 72581 checklists1 pm: 1.5% of 71478 checklists2 pm: 1.4% of 69994 checklists3 pm: 1.3% of 66822 checklists4 pm: 1.1% of 55950 checklists5 pm: 0.8% of 41360 checklists6 pm: 0.4% of 28122 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (14727) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (4257) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1273) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (920) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (693) 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
January1.6%1.6%1.4%1.5%
February1.7%1.7%1.6%1.3%
March1.5%1.3%1.2%1.3%
April1.9%2.4%3.2%2.3%
May1.3%0.6%0.2%0.1%
June0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
July0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
August0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
September0.3%0.6%1.2%1.8%
October2.6%5.1%7.9%11%
November9.7%7.4%6.8%5.1%
December4.5%4.0%3.2%1.9%

Neighboring states

  • Delaware: arrives early October, 2 weeks later than New Jersey
  • Connecticut: arrives late March, 23 weeks earlier than New Jersey
  • Pennsylvania: arrives the second week of September, 1 week earlier than New Jersey
  • New York: arrives mid January, 16 weeks later than New Jersey

Common questions

When do Purple Finches arrive in New Jersey?
Purple Finches are winter birds in New Jersey: they arrive in mid September, peak in early November (9.5% of checklists), and most are gone by early May.
When do Purple Finches leave New Jersey?
Most Purple Finches have left New Jersey by early May, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Purple Finch in New Jersey?
The Purple Finch is reported most often in early November, on about 9.5% of New Jersey checklists.
Where in New Jersey are Purple Finches seen most often?
By county, Hunterdon County, Warren County, and Bergen County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Purple Finch (counties with at least 200 checklists).