WhenToBird

Sitta pygmaea · Sittidae

When Do Pygmy Nuthatches Arrive in Utah?

Adult Pygmy Nuthatch
Photo: Casey H. Richart, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Pygmy Nuthatches are winter birds in Utah: they arrive in mid March, peak in the second week of October (1.4% of checklists), and most are gone by late November.

When to look

First arrivalsMar 15-21mid March
Common byMar 15-21mid March
PeakOct 8-14the second week of October
Most gone byNov 22-30late November

Best: the second week of October. First arrivals mid March; most are gone by late November. Peak: on about 1.4% of Utah checklists.

  1. Januncommon
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Maruncommon
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maycommon
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novcommon
  12. Decuncommon

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

0%0.5%1%1.5%2%Jan 1-7: 0.3% of 10857 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.3% of 8333 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.1% of 8360 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.2% of 10516 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.3% of 7416 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.2% of 8082 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.3% of 9643 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.4% of 7960 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.2% of 7998 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.4% of 8581 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.5% of 8637 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.5% of 13006 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.6% of 10562 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.6% of 11694 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.6% of 11382 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.8% of 16626 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.9% of 13523 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.7% of 14714 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.6% of 13711 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.5% of 16546 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.7% of 10284 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.8% of 9530 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.8% of 8854 checklistsJun 22-30: 1.1% of 10566 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.8% of 7987 checklistsJul 8-14: 1.0% of 7471 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.8% of 7240 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.8% of 9329 checklistsAug 1-7: 1.0% of 6521 checklistsAug 8-14: 1.2% of 6423 checklistsAug 15-21: 1.1% of 6208 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.9% of 9089 checklistsSep 1-7: 1.1% of 7081 checklistsSep 8-14: 1.1% of 7306 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.9% of 7208 checklistsSep 22-30: 1.1% of 8876 checklistsOct 1-7: 1.2% of 7265 checklistsOct 8-14: 1.5% of 7226 checklistsOct 15-21: 1.3% of 7007 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.9% of 8443 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.9% of 6711 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.6% of 6290 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.5% of 6169 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.4% of 8228 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.3% of 6011 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.2% of 6044 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.4% of 6721 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.3% of 9982 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 Utah 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 Utah

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Daggett CountyBest mid February · 23 checklists that week, 1,885 in all33%
  2. Garfield CountyBest the second week of November · 95 checklists that week, 10,367 in all27%
  3. San Juan CountyBest late August · 135 checklists that week, 6,877 in all7.4%
  4. Kane CountyBest the second week of December · 44 checklists that week, 6,105 in all6.3%
  5. Washington CountyBest early July · 480 checklists that week, 43,893 in all3.0%
  6. Summit CountyBest the second week of October · 194 checklists that week, 13,829 in all2.9%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Pine Valley ReservoirWashington County, best late April · 32 checklists that week, 265 in all77%
  2. Bryce Canyon National ParkGarfield County, best late April · 23 checklists that week, 536 in all40%
  3. Zion National Park (Pine Valley Peak)Washington County, best late April · 21 checklists that week, 140 in all16%
  4. Bryce Canyon National Park (Water Canyon)Garfield County, best mid May · 20 checklists that week, 221 in all15%
  5. Bryce Canyon CityGarfield County, best early May · 29 checklists that week, 285 in all13%
  6. Bryce Canyon National Park (Yovimpa Point)Kane County, best mid October · 20 checklists that week, 416 in all9.5%

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

Best time of day

In Utah, the Pygmy Nuthatch is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (0.9% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%1.5%12 am: too few checklists (242) to judge1 am: too few checklists (178) to judge2 am: too few checklists (169) to judge3 am: too few checklists (162) to judge4 am: too few checklists (284) to judge5 am: too few checklists (1984) to judge6 am: 1.2% of 11714 checklists7 am: 0.8% of 33209 checklists8 am: 0.7% of 46944 checklists9 am: 0.7% of 46290 checklists10 am: 0.7% of 43144 checklists11 am: 0.8% of 36893 checklists12 pm: 0.8% of 32758 checklists1 pm: 0.7% of 30142 checklists2 pm: 0.5% of 29414 checklists3 pm: 0.5% of 29491 checklists4 pm: 0.5% of 29154 checklists5 pm: 0.5% of 22256 checklists6 pm: 0.5% of 17383 checklists7 pm: 0.4% of 13099 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (6647) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1753) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (599) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (307) 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
January0.3%0.3%0.1%0.2%
February0.3%0.2%0.3%0.4%
March0.2%0.4%0.5%0.5%
April0.6%0.6%0.6%0.8%
May0.9%0.7%0.6%0.5%
June0.7%0.8%0.8%1.1%
July0.8%1.0%0.8%0.8%
August1.0%1.2%1.1%0.9%
September1.1%1.1%0.9%1.1%
October1.2%1.5%1.3%0.9%
November0.9%0.6%0.5%0.4%
December0.3%0.2%0.4%0.3%

Neighboring states

  • Wyoming: arrives the second week of July, 15 weeks later than Utah
  • Nevada: arrives early January, 10 weeks earlier than Utah
  • Colorado: year-round, peaks the second week of August
  • Idaho: year-round, peaks late August

Common questions

When do Pygmy Nuthatches arrive in Utah?
Pygmy Nuthatches are winter birds in Utah: they arrive in mid March, peak in the second week of October (1.4% of checklists), and most are gone by late November.
When do Pygmy Nuthatches leave Utah?
Most Pygmy Nuthatches have left Utah by late November, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Pygmy Nuthatch in Utah?
The Pygmy Nuthatch is reported most often in the second week of October, on about 1.4% of Utah checklists.
Where in Utah are Pygmy Nuthatches seen most often?
By county, Daggett County, Garfield County, and San Juan County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Pygmy Nuthatch (counties with at least 200 checklists).