WhenToBird

Sitta canadensis · Sittidae

When Do Red-breasted Nuthatches Arrive in Iowa?

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

Red-breasted Nuthatches reach Iowa in mid August, are common by late August, peak in late September (9.9% of checklists), and most are gone by late February.

When to look

First arrivalsAug 15-21mid August
Common byAug 22-31late August
PeakSep 22-30late September
Most gone byFeb 22-28late February

Best: late September. First arrivals mid August; most are gone by late February. Peak: on about 9.9% of Iowa checklists.

  1. Januncommon
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Maruncommon
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Junnot usually seen
  7. Julnot usually seen
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novcommon
  12. Deccommon

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

0%5%10%15%Jan 1-7: 3.4% of 5551 checklistsJan 8-14: 3.2% of 3498 checklistsJan 15-21: 3.3% of 3803 checklistsJan 22-31: 3.4% of 4807 checklistsFeb 1-7: 3.1% of 3613 checklistsFeb 8-14: 4.1% of 4173 checklistsFeb 15-21: 3.6% of 5796 checklistsFeb 22-28: 1.9% of 4394 checklistsMar 1-7: 1.4% of 5295 checklistsMar 8-14: 1.5% of 5679 checklistsMar 15-21: 1.3% of 5418 checklistsMar 22-31: 1.0% of 8613 checklistsApr 1-7: 1.0% of 6970 checklistsApr 8-14: 1.3% of 7511 checklistsApr 15-21: 1.2% of 8321 checklistsApr 22-30: 1.2% of 11976 checklistsMay 1-7: 2.3% of 11725 checklistsMay 8-14: 1.9% of 12626 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.7% of 9372 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.1% of 10330 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.1% of 5472 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.1% of 4568 checklistsJun 15-21: 0% of 3870 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.1% of 4780 checklistsJul 1-7: 0% of 4201 checklistsJul 8-14: 0% of 3605 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.1% of 3621 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.1% of 5093 checklistsAug 1-7: 0% of 3931 checklistsAug 8-14: 0% of 3488 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.4% of 3802 checklistsAug 22-31: 2.6% of 6293 checklistsSep 1-7: 6.7% of 5328 checklistsSep 8-14: 8.0% of 4622 checklistsSep 15-21: 9.5% of 4367 checklistsSep 22-30: 11% of 6086 checklistsOct 1-7: 8.3% of 4708 checklistsOct 8-14: 5.7% of 4791 checklistsOct 15-21: 3.8% of 4429 checklistsOct 22-31: 4.7% of 5633 checklistsNov 1-7: 5.9% of 4090 checklistsNov 8-14: 5.5% of 3416 checklistsNov 15-21: 4.2% of 3398 checklistsNov 22-30: 5.2% of 4679 checklistsDec 1-7: 4.4% of 3442 checklistsDec 8-14: 4.5% of 3322 checklistsDec 15-21: 3.7% of 4619 checklistsDec 22-31: 4.1% of 5113 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 Iowa 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 Iowa

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. O'Brien CountyBest late January · 17 checklists that week, 342 in all45%
  2. Franklin CountyBest mid November · 10 checklists that week, 331 in all44%
  3. Des Moines CountyBest late September · 43 checklists that week, 2,251 in all35%
  4. Sioux CountyBest mid January · 12 checklists that week, 1,159 in all31%
  5. Ida CountyBest late November · 10 checklists that week, 227 in all28%
  6. Calhoun CountyBest mid September · 10 checklists that week, 446 in all27%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Eagle Point ParkDubuque County, best late September · 21 checklists that week, 380 in all49%
  2. Riverview Recreation AreaBlack Hawk County, best late September · 21 checklists that week, 339 in all38%
  3. Martin LakeBlack Hawk County, best late September · 27 checklists that week, 523 in all38%
  4. Winegar Lake-Tobin Park AccessBenton County, best late September · 26 checklists that week, 288 in all29%
  5. Saylorville Recreation Area (north)Polk County, best the second week of September · 81 checklists that week, 1,673 in all28%
  6. Mines of Spain State Recreation Area (Catfish Creek)Dubuque County, best the second week of September · 26 checklists that week, 244 in all28%

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

Best time of day

In Iowa, the Red-breasted Nuthatch is most often listed on checklists started between 7 and 9 am (3.9% of those checklists).

0%2%4%6%12 am: too few checklists (96) to judge1 am: too few checklists (99) to judge2 am: too few checklists (67) to judge3 am: too few checklists (82) to judge4 am: too few checklists (201) to judge5 am: too few checklists (1888) to judge6 am: 2.4% of 11313 checklists7 am: 4.0% of 25717 checklists8 am: 3.8% of 29755 checklists9 am: 3.5% of 28897 checklists10 am: 3.0% of 26343 checklists11 am: 2.6% of 21210 checklists12 pm: 2.4% of 17662 checklists1 pm: 2.4% of 16595 checklists2 pm: 2.5% of 16405 checklists3 pm: 2.5% of 17030 checklists4 pm: 1.6% of 17378 checklists5 pm: 1.8% of 14251 checklists6 pm: 1.0% of 10349 checklists7 pm: 0.3% of 6233 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (2002) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (392) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (186) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (87) 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
January3.4%3.2%3.3%3.4%
February3.1%4.1%3.6%1.9%
March1.4%1.5%1.3%1.0%
April1.0%1.3%1.2%1.2%
May2.3%1.9%0.7%0.1%
June0.1%0.1%0%0.1%
July0%0%0.1%0.1%
August0%0%0.4%2.6%
September6.7%8.0%9.5%11%
October8.3%5.7%3.8%4.7%
November5.9%5.5%4.2%5.2%
December4.4%4.5%3.7%4.1%

Neighboring states

  • Missouri: arrives early September, 2 weeks later than Iowa
  • Wisconsin: arrives late August, 1 week later than Iowa
  • Minnesota: arrives mid August, in the same week than Iowa
  • Illinois: arrives mid August, in the same week than Iowa

Common questions

When do Red-breasted Nuthatches arrive in Iowa?
Red-breasted Nuthatches reach Iowa in mid August, are common by late August, peak in late September (9.9% of checklists), and most are gone by late February.
When do Red-breasted Nuthatches leave Iowa?
Most Red-breasted Nuthatches have left Iowa by late February, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until the second week of May.
When is the best time to see a Red-breasted Nuthatch in Iowa?
The Red-breasted Nuthatch is reported most often in late September, on about 9.9% of Iowa checklists.
Where in Iowa are Red-breasted Nuthatches seen most often?
By county, O'Brien County, Franklin County, and Des Moines County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Red-breasted Nuthatch (counties with at least 200 checklists).