WhenToBird

Sitta canadensis · Sittidae

When Do Red-breasted Nuthatches Arrive in California?

Adult Red-breasted Nuthatch
Photo: Joshua Liverman, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Red-breasted Nuthatches are in California all year, but most are here in fall: numbers build from mid August, peak in the second week of October (6.4% of checklists), and fall back by early November. In the quietest week (late January) they are still on about 2.3% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildAug 15-21mid August
PeakOct 8-14the second week of October
Fall back byNov 1-7early November
FewestJan 22-31late January

Best: the second week of October. Here all year; numbers build from mid August and fall back by early November. Peak: on about 6.4% of California checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maycommon
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augcommon
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novcommon
  12. Deccommon

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

0%2%4%6%8%Jan 1-7: 2.5% of 112336 checklistsJan 8-14: 2.5% of 85518 checklistsJan 15-21: 2.4% of 86488 checklistsJan 22-31: 2.4% of 116174 checklistsFeb 1-7: 2.2% of 75171 checklistsFeb 8-14: 2.5% of 84467 checklistsFeb 15-21: 2.4% of 105683 checklistsFeb 22-28: 2.5% of 83396 checklistsMar 1-7: 2.3% of 77470 checklistsMar 8-14: 2.5% of 75180 checklistsMar 15-21: 2.6% of 80770 checklistsMar 22-31: 2.7% of 114116 checklistsApr 1-7: 3.0% of 84057 checklistsApr 8-14: 3.3% of 83692 checklistsApr 15-21: 3.6% of 89242 checklistsApr 22-30: 3.5% of 114289 checklistsMay 1-7: 3.4% of 85728 checklistsMay 8-14: 3.5% of 91984 checklistsMay 15-21: 3.5% of 75478 checklistsMay 22-31: 4.0% of 106250 checklistsJun 1-7: 4.7% of 70051 checklistsJun 8-14: 5.0% of 67485 checklistsJun 15-21: 5.1% of 66269 checklistsJun 22-30: 5.1% of 79172 checklistsJul 1-7: 4.8% of 62877 checklistsJul 8-14: 4.7% of 60328 checklistsJul 15-21: 4.5% of 59705 checklistsJul 22-31: 4.4% of 83796 checklistsAug 1-7: 4.1% of 60215 checklistsAug 8-14: 4.4% of 60172 checklistsAug 15-21: 4.4% of 59877 checklistsAug 22-31: 4.4% of 89107 checklistsSep 1-7: 5.0% of 72000 checklistsSep 8-14: 5.8% of 71228 checklistsSep 15-21: 6.0% of 76808 checklistsSep 22-30: 6.2% of 100204 checklistsOct 1-7: 6.8% of 76571 checklistsOct 8-14: 6.2% of 80874 checklistsOct 15-21: 6.2% of 74581 checklistsOct 22-31: 5.3% of 97498 checklistsNov 1-7: 4.7% of 70851 checklistsNov 8-14: 4.2% of 72431 checklistsNov 15-21: 3.5% of 66767 checklistsNov 22-30: 3.3% of 94737 checklistsDec 1-7: 3.0% of 65393 checklistsDec 8-14: 3.0% of 67449 checklistsDec 15-21: 3.2% of 83421 checklistsDec 22-31: 2.6% 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. Sierra CountyBest the second week of September · 90 checklists that week, 8,945 in all51%
  2. Nevada CountyBest late August · 575 checklists that week, 25,896 in all44%
  3. Alpine CountyBest late October · 220 checklists that week, 6,013 in all41%
  4. Calaveras CountyBest the second week of July · 124 checklists that week, 6,843 in all36%
  5. Mariposa CountyBest the second week of September · 332 checklists that week, 17,385 in all34%
  6. Amador CountyBest late July · 124 checklists that week, 4,733 in all34%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Calaveras Big Trees State ParkCalaveras County, best late September · 21 checklists that week, 430 in all91%
  2. Tilden Regional ParkContra Costa County, best early September · 46 checklists that week, 1,888 in all89%
  3. Jewel Lake (east)Contra Costa County, best early October · 25 checklists that week, 1,137 in all86%
  4. EbmudContra Costa County, best late April · 25 checklists that week, 523 in all84%
  5. Redwood Regional Park (Eastport)Contra Costa County, best late October · 43 checklists that week, 594 in all84%
  6. Wrights LakeEl Dorado County, best the second week of June · 25 checklists that week, 363 in all83%

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

Best time of day

In California, the Red-breasted Nuthatch is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (4.9% of those checklists).

0%2%4%6%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: 5.0% of 186053 checklists7 am: 4.9% of 444086 checklists8 am: 4.7% of 535846 checklists9 am: 4.4% of 486061 checklists10 am: 4.0% of 411130 checklists11 am: 3.7% of 325798 checklists12 pm: 3.4% of 269132 checklists1 pm: 3.2% of 244762 checklists2 pm: 2.9% of 235420 checklists3 pm: 2.6% of 232365 checklists4 pm: 2.2% of 208688 checklists5 pm: 2.5% of 146104 checklists6 pm: 2.4% 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
January2.5%2.5%2.4%2.4%
February2.2%2.5%2.4%2.5%
March2.3%2.5%2.6%2.7%
April3.0%3.3%3.6%3.5%
May3.4%3.5%3.5%4.0%
June4.7%5.0%5.1%5.1%
July4.8%4.7%4.5%4.4%
August4.1%4.4%4.4%4.4%
September5.0%5.8%6.0%6.2%
October6.8%6.2%6.2%5.3%
November4.7%4.2%3.5%3.3%
December3.0%3.0%3.2%2.6%

Neighboring states

  • Nevada: arrives the second week of August, 1 week earlier than California
  • Utah: arrives early July, 6 weeks earlier than California
  • Arizona: arrives early April, 18 weeks earlier than California
  • Oregon: year-round, peaks early September

Common questions

When do Red-breasted Nuthatches arrive in California?
Red-breasted Nuthatches are in California all year, but most are here in fall: numbers build from mid August, peak in the second week of October (6.4% of checklists), and fall back by early November. In the quietest week (late January) they are still on about 2.3% of checklists.
When do Red-breasted Nuthatches leave California?
Red-breasted Nuthatches never fully leave California: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by early November, but some are still reported in every week, about 2.3% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Red-breasted Nuthatch in California?
The Red-breasted Nuthatch is reported most often in the second week of October, on about 6.4% of California checklists.
Where in California are Red-breasted Nuthatches seen most often?
By county, Sierra County, Nevada County, and Alpine County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Red-breasted Nuthatch (counties with at least 200 checklists).