WhenToBird

Sitta canadensis · Sittidae

When Do Red-breasted Nuthatches Arrive in New York?

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

Red-breasted Nuthatches are in New York all year, but most are here in fall: numbers build from late August, peak in late September (11% of checklists), and fall back by the second week of December. In the quietest week (early June) they are still on about 4.0% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildAug 22-31late August
PeakSep 22-30late September
Fall back byDec 8-14the second week of December
FewestJun 1-7early June

Best: late September. Here all year; numbers build from late August and fall back by the second week of December. Peak: on about 11% of New York checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maycommon
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  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: 5.9% of 66410 checklistsJan 8-14: 5.9% of 49310 checklistsJan 15-21: 5.3% of 49919 checklistsJan 22-31: 6.1% of 62513 checklistsFeb 1-7: 6.5% of 43526 checklistsFeb 8-14: 7.6% of 49753 checklistsFeb 15-21: 7.1% of 65147 checklistsFeb 22-28: 5.9% of 50173 checklistsMar 1-7: 5.7% of 50325 checklistsMar 8-14: 5.3% of 55371 checklistsMar 15-21: 5.1% of 56293 checklistsMar 22-31: 4.9% of 82677 checklistsApr 1-7: 4.9% of 65295 checklistsApr 8-14: 5.0% of 73080 checklistsApr 15-21: 5.0% of 73857 checklistsApr 22-30: 5.8% of 106093 checklistsMay 1-7: 6.9% of 102772 checklistsMay 8-14: 5.9% of 110051 checklistsMay 15-21: 4.8% of 94797 checklistsMay 22-31: 3.8% of 101272 checklistsJun 1-7: 4.0% of 59471 checklistsJun 8-14: 4.4% of 55497 checklistsJun 15-21: 4.7% of 51761 checklistsJun 22-30: 4.8% of 59219 checklistsJul 1-7: 5.9% of 48226 checklistsJul 8-14: 5.1% of 42315 checklistsJul 15-21: 4.9% of 40637 checklistsJul 22-31: 4.6% of 57183 checklistsAug 1-7: 4.9% of 40461 checklistsAug 8-14: 4.9% of 39880 checklistsAug 15-21: 6.2% of 41146 checklistsAug 22-31: 7.9% of 63381 checklistsSep 1-7: 9.7% of 48640 checklistsSep 8-14: 11% of 47882 checklistsSep 15-21: 12% of 49063 checklistsSep 22-30: 11% of 57906 checklistsOct 1-7: 12% of 48447 checklistsOct 8-14: 10% of 51901 checklistsOct 15-21: 9.5% of 46717 checklistsOct 22-31: 9.6% of 61992 checklistsNov 1-7: 8.9% of 44593 checklistsNov 8-14: 8.8% of 42566 checklistsNov 15-21: 8.7% of 39675 checklistsNov 22-30: 8.8% of 51197 checklistsDec 1-7: 8.2% of 36567 checklistsDec 8-14: 7.9% of 37254 checklistsDec 15-21: 7.3% of 43754 checklistsDec 22-31: 7.2% of 62470 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 York 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 York

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Hamilton CountyBest late February · 156 checklists that week, 13,964 in all60%
  2. Franklin CountyBest the second week of September · 303 checklists that week, 20,717 in all58%
  3. Warren CountyBest mid September · 201 checklists that week, 12,066 in all38%
  4. Yates CountyBest late November · 148 checklists that week, 10,331 in all38%
  5. Essex CountyBest mid February · 803 checklists that week, 36,374 in all37%
  6. Allegany CountyBest late September · 178 checklists that week, 11,955 in all29%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Saranac Lakes Wild ForestFranklin County, best mid March · 36 checklists that week, 1,899 in all93%
  2. Debar Mountain Wild ForestFranklin County, best late August · 29 checklists that week, 447 in all89%
  3. Otis Pike Preserve - West (Jones Pond)Suffolk County, best late December · 21 checklists that week, 743 in all89%
  4. Barnum PondFranklin County, best early September · 28 checklists that week, 1,143 in all86%
  5. Albany Pine Bush PreserveAlbany County, best mid September · 95 checklists that week, 1,418 in all85%
  6. Park PreserveTompkins County, best early September · 40 checklists that week, 1,055 in all80%

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

Best time of day

In New York, the Red-breasted Nuthatch is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (10% of those checklists).

0%5%10%15%12 am: too few checklists (1146) to judge1 am: too few checklists (1055) to judge2 am: too few checklists (1121) to judge3 am: too few checklists (1353) to judge4 am: too few checklists (4785) to judge5 am: too few checklists (32052) to judge6 am: 9.7% of 124869 checklists7 am: 10% of 298506 checklists8 am: 8.9% of 337334 checklists9 am: 8.0% of 307787 checklists10 am: 6.8% of 270801 checklists11 am: 6.0% of 233238 checklists12 pm: 5.6% of 213830 checklists1 pm: 5.2% of 193321 checklists2 pm: 4.8% of 180741 checklists3 pm: 4.2% of 170348 checklists4 pm: 3.8% of 147224 checklists5 pm: 3.6% of 111962 checklists6 pm: 2.9% of 78261 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (44425) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (15648) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (4795) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (2454) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (1378) 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
January5.9%5.9%5.3%6.1%
February6.5%7.6%7.1%5.9%
March5.7%5.3%5.1%4.9%
April4.9%5.0%5.0%5.8%
May6.9%5.9%4.8%3.8%
June4.0%4.4%4.7%4.8%
July5.9%5.1%4.9%4.6%
August4.9%4.9%6.2%7.9%
September9.7%11%12%11%
October12%10%9.5%9.6%
November8.9%8.8%8.7%8.8%
December8.2%7.9%7.3%7.2%

Neighboring states

  • Connecticut: arrives mid June, 9 weeks earlier than New York
  • New Jersey: arrives mid August, 1 week earlier than New York
  • Pennsylvania: arrives mid August, 1 week earlier than New York
  • Vermont: year-round, peaks the second week of September

Common questions

When do Red-breasted Nuthatches arrive in New York?
Red-breasted Nuthatches are in New York all year, but most are here in fall: numbers build from late August, peak in late September (11% of checklists), and fall back by the second week of December. In the quietest week (early June) they are still on about 4.0% of checklists.
When do Red-breasted Nuthatches leave New York?
Red-breasted Nuthatches never fully leave New York: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by the second week of December, but some are still reported in every week, about 4.0% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Red-breasted Nuthatch in New York?
The Red-breasted Nuthatch is reported most often in late September, on about 11% of New York checklists.
Where in New York are Red-breasted Nuthatches seen most often?
By county, Hamilton County, Franklin County, and Warren County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Red-breasted Nuthatch (counties with at least 200 checklists).