WhenToBird

Sitta canadensis · Sittidae

When Do Red-breasted Nuthatches Arrive in New Jersey?

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

Red-breasted Nuthatches are winter birds in New Jersey: the first arrive in mid August, they are common by late August, peak in the second week of October (11% of checklists), and most are gone by early May.

When to look

First arrivalsAug 15-21mid August
Common byAug 22-31late August
PeakOct 8-14the second week of October
Most gone byMay 1-7early May

Best: the second week of October. First arrivals mid August; most are gone by early May. Peak: on about 11% of New Jersey 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. Novpeak season
  12. Deccommon

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

0%5%10%15%Jan 1-7: 3.5% of 28167 checklistsJan 8-14: 3.7% of 20583 checklistsJan 15-21: 3.2% of 19739 checklistsJan 22-31: 3.7% of 24586 checklistsFeb 1-7: 3.4% of 17226 checklistsFeb 8-14: 3.2% of 19567 checklistsFeb 15-21: 2.9% of 26553 checklistsFeb 22-28: 3.3% of 19046 checklistsMar 1-7: 3.3% of 17969 checklistsMar 8-14: 2.9% of 18976 checklistsMar 15-21: 2.6% of 18581 checklistsMar 22-31: 2.8% of 27590 checklistsApr 1-7: 2.6% of 21202 checklistsApr 8-14: 2.8% of 23609 checklistsApr 15-21: 2.8% of 25056 checklistsApr 22-30: 2.7% of 36679 checklistsMay 1-7: 2.5% of 38378 checklistsMay 8-14: 1.2% of 44071 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.4% of 34076 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.1% of 32558 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.1% of 18049 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.1% of 15597 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.1% of 14894 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.3% of 17187 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.2% of 13406 checklistsJul 8-14: 0.1% of 12550 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.1% of 12358 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.1% of 18382 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.1% of 13689 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.2% of 14006 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.8% of 14483 checklistsAug 22-31: 3.1% of 23182 checklistsSep 1-7: 4.4% of 17984 checklistsSep 8-14: 5.8% of 18320 checklistsSep 15-21: 8.4% of 20491 checklistsSep 22-30: 8.3% of 26176 checklistsOct 1-7: 9.6% of 24112 checklistsOct 8-14: 11% of 24603 checklistsOct 15-21: 11% of 24549 checklistsOct 22-31: 8.9% of 26206 checklistsNov 1-7: 7.9% of 17469 checklistsNov 8-14: 6.6% of 15102 checklistsNov 15-21: 6.8% of 14958 checklistsNov 22-30: 6.2% of 19447 checklistsDec 1-7: 5.8% of 14017 checklistsDec 8-14: 6.0% of 14625 checklistsDec 15-21: 5.1% of 16937 checklistsDec 22-31: 4.1% of 26651 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 New Jersey 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 New Jersey

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Ocean CountyBest the second week of October · 1325 checklists that week, 87,340 in all17%
  2. Cape May CountyBest mid October · 10065 checklists that week, 189,832 in all16%
  3. Warren CountyBest early March · 505 checklists that week, 20,077 in all16%
  4. Cumberland CountyBest the second week of December · 73 checklists that week, 13,927 in all14%
  5. Hunterdon CountyBest mid November · 1028 checklists that week, 57,610 in all12%
  6. Atlantic CountyBest late November · 580 checklists that week, 28,208 in all10%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. John A Philips PreserveMiddlesex County, best late November · 22 checklists that week, 177 in all76%
  2. Lake Lily (Cape May Point)Cape May County, best mid November · 34 checklists that week, 1,952 in all68%
  3. Ingersoll Reservoir (northeast)Warren County, best late February · 150 checklists that week, 586 in all65%
  4. Wells Mills ParkOcean County, best early November · 43 checklists that week, 1,079 in all59%
  5. Island Beach State Park (north)Ocean County, best the second week of October · 56 checklists that week, 1,171 in all58%
  6. Cape May Point BeachCape May County, best the second week of November · 125 checklists that week, 5,796 in all53%

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

Best time of day

In New Jersey, the Red-breasted Nuthatch is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (6.2% of those checklists).

0%2%4%6%8%12 am: too few checklists (746) to judge1 am: too few checklists (640) to judge2 am: too few checklists (606) to judge3 am: too few checklists (755) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1681) to judge5 am: too few checklists (11258) to judge6 am: 6.2% of 50447 checklists7 am: 6.2% of 118312 checklists8 am: 4.9% of 123273 checklists9 am: 4.4% of 107783 checklists10 am: 3.9% of 97537 checklists11 am: 3.6% of 82427 checklists12 pm: 3.2% of 72581 checklists1 pm: 2.8% of 71478 checklists2 pm: 2.6% of 69994 checklists3 pm: 2.4% of 66822 checklists4 pm: 1.9% of 55950 checklists5 pm: 1.5% of 41360 checklists6 pm: 0.6% of 28122 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (14727) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (4257) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1273) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (920) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (693) 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
January3.5%3.7%3.2%3.7%
February3.4%3.2%2.9%3.3%
March3.3%2.9%2.6%2.8%
April2.6%2.8%2.8%2.7%
May2.5%1.2%0.4%0.1%
June0.1%0.1%0.1%0.3%
July0.2%0.1%0.1%0.1%
August0.1%0.2%0.8%3.1%
September4.4%5.8%8.4%8.3%
October9.6%11%11%8.9%
November7.9%6.6%6.8%6.2%
December5.8%6.0%5.1%4.1%

Neighboring states

  • Delaware: arrives early September, 2 weeks later than New Jersey
  • Connecticut: arrives mid June, 8 weeks earlier than New Jersey
  • Pennsylvania: arrives mid August, in the same week than New Jersey
  • New York: arrives late August, 1 week later than New Jersey

Common questions

When do Red-breasted Nuthatches arrive in New Jersey?
Red-breasted Nuthatches are winter birds in New Jersey: the first arrive in mid August, they are common by late August, peak in the second week of October (11% of checklists), and most are gone by early May.
When do Red-breasted Nuthatches leave New Jersey?
Most Red-breasted Nuthatches have left New Jersey by early May, 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 New Jersey?
The Red-breasted Nuthatch is reported most often in the second week of October, on about 11% of New Jersey checklists.
Where in New Jersey are Red-breasted Nuthatches seen most often?
By county, Ocean County, Cape May County, and Warren County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Red-breasted Nuthatch (counties with at least 200 checklists).