WhenToBird

Mergus serrator · Anatidae

When Do Red-breasted Mergansers Arrive in Nebraska?

Adult male Red-breasted Merganser
Photo: Peter Chen 2.0, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Red-breasted Mergansers are winter birds in Nebraska: they arrive in early November, peak in the second week of November (2.9% of checklists), and most are gone by mid December.

When to look

First arrivalsNov 1-7early November
Common byNov 1-7early November
PeakNov 8-14the second week of November
Most gone byDec 15-21mid December

Best: the second week of November. First arrivals early November; most are gone by mid December. Peak: on about 2.9% of Nebraska checklists.

  1. Januncommon
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Mayrare
  6. Junnot usually seen
  7. Julnot usually seen
  8. Augnot usually seen
  9. Sepnot usually seen
  10. Octuncommon
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Deccommon

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

0%2%4%6%Jan 1-7: 0.5% of 4210 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.6% of 2891 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.8% of 2685 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.7% of 3834 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.5% of 2803 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.5% of 3134 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.7% of 4508 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.9% of 3238 checklistsMar 1-7: 1.7% of 3862 checklistsMar 8-14: 2.2% of 4894 checklistsMar 15-21: 2.5% of 5862 checklistsMar 22-31: 2.7% of 8598 checklistsApr 1-7: 2.4% of 5530 checklistsApr 8-14: 1.8% of 5528 checklistsApr 15-21: 1.6% of 6091 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.8% of 8661 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.4% of 9842 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.1% of 10044 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.1% of 8863 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.1% of 10207 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.1% of 4922 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.1% of 4054 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.1% of 3680 checklistsJun 22-30: 0% of 4349 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.1% of 3277 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.1% of 2803 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.1% of 2842 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.1% of 3920 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.1% of 2981 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.1% of 2819 checklistsAug 15-21: 0% of 3179 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.1% of 4599 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.1% of 3958 checklistsSep 8-14: 0% of 3460 checklistsSep 15-21: 0% of 3435 checklistsSep 22-30: 0% of 4975 checklistsOct 1-7: 0% of 3611 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.1% of 3605 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.1% of 3474 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.4% of 4352 checklistsNov 1-7: 1.6% of 3119 checklistsNov 8-14: 4.4% of 2887 checklistsNov 15-21: 2.7% of 2568 checklistsNov 22-30: 1.7% of 3506 checklistsDec 1-7: 1.8% of 2453 checklistsDec 8-14: 1.1% of 2756 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.4% of 3760 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.9% of 3746 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 Nebraska 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.

Embed this map on your site

Where in Nebraska

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Cedar CountyBest early April · 17 checklists that week, 1,691 in all32%
  2. Keith CountyBest late January · 47 checklists that week, 3,876 in all29%
  3. Dakota CountyBest late March · 66 checklists that week, 2,182 in all17%
  4. Platte CountyBest late November · 19 checklists that week, 1,287 in all12%
  5. Pierce CountyBest late March · 11 checklists that week, 516 in all11%
  6. Hitchcock CountyBest early December · 15 checklists that week, 441 in all10%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Salt Lake (west)Lancaster County, best late March · 44 checklists that week, 805 in all63%
  2. Ogallala LakeKeith County, best late February · 21 checklists that week, 748 in all60%
  3. Base LakeSarpy County, best late March · 36 checklists that week, 372 in all53%
  4. Newport Landing Lake (east)Douglas County, best late March · 25 checklists that week, 206 in all43%
  5. Levi Carter ParkDouglas County, best mid March · 22 checklists that week, 371 in all39%
  6. Pawnee LakeLancaster County, best the second week of March · 58 checklists that week, 1,270 in all32%

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

Best time of day

In Nebraska, the Red-breasted Merganser is most often listed on checklists started between 12 and 2 pm (1.0% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%1.5%12 am: too few checklists (60) to judge1 am: too few checklists (70) to judge2 am: too few checklists (74) to judge3 am: too few checklists (97) to judge4 am: too few checklists (318) to judge5 am: too few checklists (1382) to judge6 am: 0.8% of 6945 checklists7 am: 0.7% of 19066 checklists8 am: 0.7% of 24661 checklists9 am: 0.9% of 23438 checklists10 am: 0.9% of 20424 checklists11 am: 0.9% of 16727 checklists12 pm: 0.9% of 14774 checklists1 pm: 1.0% of 14443 checklists2 pm: 0.8% of 14830 checklists3 pm: 0.8% of 14445 checklists4 pm: 0.9% of 13353 checklists5 pm: 0.6% of 10506 checklists6 pm: 0.5% of 9208 checklists7 pm: 0.2% of 6334 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (2406) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (531) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (201) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (82) 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
January0.5%0.6%0.8%0.7%
February0.5%0.5%0.7%0.9%
March1.7%2.2%2.5%2.7%
April2.4%1.8%1.6%0.8%
May0.4%0.1%0.1%0.1%
June0.1%0.1%0.1%0%
July0.1%0.1%0.1%0.1%
August0.1%0.1%0%0.1%
September0.1%0%0%0%
October0%0.1%0.1%0.4%
November1.6%4.4%2.7%1.7%
December1.8%1.1%0.4%0.9%

Neighboring states

  • Kansas: arrives early November, in the same week than Nebraska
  • South Dakota: arrives the second week of November, 1 week later than Nebraska
  • Iowa: arrives late February, 15 weeks later than Nebraska
  • Missouri: arrives early November, in the same week than Nebraska

Common questions

When do Red-breasted Mergansers arrive in Nebraska?
Red-breasted Mergansers are winter birds in Nebraska: they arrive in early November, peak in the second week of November (2.9% of checklists), and most are gone by mid December.
When do Red-breasted Mergansers leave Nebraska?
Most Red-breasted Mergansers have left Nebraska by mid December, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Red-breasted Merganser in Nebraska?
The Red-breasted Merganser is reported most often in the second week of November, on about 2.9% of Nebraska checklists.
Where in Nebraska are Red-breasted Mergansers seen most often?
By county, Cedar County, Keith County, and Dakota County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Red-breasted Merganser (counties with at least 200 checklists).