WhenToBird

Mergus serrator · Anatidae

When Do Red-breasted Mergansers Arrive in North Dakota?

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

Red-breasted Mergansers are winter birds in North Dakota: they arrive in mid October, peak in the second week of November (2.6% of checklists), and most are gone by early May.

When to look

First arrivalsOct 15-21mid October
Common byOct 15-21mid October
PeakNov 8-14the second week of November
Most gone byMay 1-7early May

Best: the second week of November. First arrivals mid October; most are gone by early May. Peak: on about 2.6% of North Dakota checklists.

  1. Januncommon
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Maruncommon
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Junnot usually seen
  7. Julnot usually seen
  8. Augnot usually seen
  9. Sepnot usually seen
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Deccommon

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

0%1%2%3%4%Jan 1-7: 0.8% of 1694 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.5% of 1210 checklistsJan 15-21: 1.0% of 1263 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.5% of 1984 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.5% of 1209 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.4% of 1307 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.4% of 1655 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.5% of 1619 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.4% of 1653 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.4% of 1818 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.4% of 2103 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.7% of 3714 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.8% of 2955 checklistsApr 8-14: 1.7% of 3550 checklistsApr 15-21: 2.2% of 4104 checklistsApr 22-30: 1.8% of 5712 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.5% of 5328 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.2% of 5885 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.1% of 5344 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.1% of 7512 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.1% of 4329 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.1% of 4287 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.1% of 3798 checklistsJun 22-30: 0% of 4361 checklistsJul 1-7: 0% of 2939 checklistsJul 8-14: 0% of 2407 checklistsJul 15-21: 0% of 2254 checklistsJul 22-31: 0% of 2852 checklistsAug 1-7: 0% of 2119 checklistsAug 8-14: 0% of 2044 checklistsAug 15-21: 0% of 2124 checklistsAug 22-31: 0% of 3168 checklistsSep 1-7: 0% of 2449 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.1% of 2310 checklistsSep 15-21: 0% of 2092 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.1% of 2565 checklistsOct 1-7: 0% of 2071 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.1% of 1918 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.3% of 1907 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.8% of 2589 checklistsNov 1-7: 2.6% of 1858 checklistsNov 8-14: 3.1% of 1753 checklistsNov 15-21: 1.9% of 1483 checklistsNov 22-30: 1.2% of 1928 checklistsDec 1-7: 1.7% of 1337 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.8% of 1309 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.5% of 1642 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.7% of 1830 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 North Dakota 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 North Dakota

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Mercer CountyBest the second week of February · 20 checklists that week, 2,518 in all28%
  2. Renville CountyBest early November · 10 checklists that week, 415 in all23%
  3. Logan CountyBest the second week of November · 10 checklists that week, 443 in all13%
  4. McLean CountyBest the second week of November · 46 checklists that week, 1,933 in all12%
  5. McKenzie CountyBest late November · 42 checklists that week, 4,089 in all9.5%
  6. Hettinger CountyBest late October · 17 checklists that week, 400 in all9.1%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Sakakawea Recreation AreaMercer County, best mid January · 20 checklists that week, 617 in all49%
  2. Spring Lake ParkWilliams County, best the second week of May · 22 checklists that week, 767 in all11%
  3. Sakakawea Recreation Area (northwest)Mountrail County, best the second week of May · 21 checklists that week, 595 in all5.6%

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

Best time of day

In North Dakota, the Red-breasted Merganser is most often listed on checklists started between 11 am and 1 pm (0.7% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%12 am: too few checklists (74) to judge1 am: too few checklists (45) to judge2 am: too few checklists (42) to judge3 am: too few checklists (68) to judge4 am: too few checklists (274) to judge5 am: too few checklists (1538) to judge6 am: 0.2% of 4242 checklists7 am: 0.3% of 9520 checklists8 am: 0.5% of 13065 checklists9 am: 0.6% of 13356 checklists10 am: 0.6% of 12128 checklists11 am: 0.6% of 10772 checklists12 pm: 0.7% of 10316 checklists1 pm: 0.6% of 9169 checklists2 pm: 0.7% of 8880 checklists3 pm: 0.6% of 8688 checklists4 pm: 0.5% of 8201 checklists5 pm: 0.4% of 6687 checklists6 pm: 0.4% of 5455 checklists7 pm: 0.5% of 3926 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (2024) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (602) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (181) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (89) 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
January0.8%0.5%1.0%0.5%
February0.5%0.4%0.4%0.5%
March0.4%0.4%0.4%0.7%
April0.8%1.7%2.2%1.8%
May0.5%0.2%0.1%0.1%
June0.1%0.1%0.1%0%
July0%0%0%0%
August0%0%0%0%
September0%0.1%0%0.1%
October0%0.1%0.3%0.8%
November2.6%3.1%1.9%1.2%
December1.7%0.8%0.5%0.7%

Neighboring states

  • South Dakota: arrives the second week of November, 3 weeks later than North Dakota
  • Minnesota: arrives the second week of March, 19 weeks later than North Dakota
  • Nebraska: arrives early November, 2 weeks later than North Dakota
  • Iowa: arrives late February, 17 weeks later than North Dakota

Common questions

When do Red-breasted Mergansers arrive in North Dakota?
Red-breasted Mergansers are winter birds in North Dakota: they arrive in mid October, peak in the second week of November (2.6% of checklists), and most are gone by early May.
When do Red-breasted Mergansers leave North Dakota?
Most Red-breasted Mergansers have left North Dakota by early May, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Red-breasted Merganser in North Dakota?
The Red-breasted Merganser is reported most often in the second week of November, on about 2.6% of North Dakota checklists.
Where in North Dakota are Red-breasted Mergansers seen most often?
By county, Mercer County, Renville County, and Logan County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Red-breasted Merganser (counties with at least 200 checklists).