WhenToBird

Sitta canadensis · Sittidae

When Do Red-breasted Nuthatches Arrive in North Carolina?

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

Red-breasted Nuthatches are winter birds in North Carolina: the first arrive in mid May, they are common by early September, peak in late October (4.6% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of April.

When to look

First arrivalsMay 15-21mid May
Common bySep 1-7early September
PeakOct 22-31late October
Most gone byApr 8-14the second week of April

Best: late October. First arrivals mid May; most are gone by the second week of April. Peak: on about 4.6% of North Carolina checklists.

  1. Janpeak season
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marcommon
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Jununcommon
  7. Juluncommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novpeak season
  12. Decpeak season

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

0%2%4%6%Jan 1-7: 3.5% of 30085 checklistsJan 8-14: 3.4% of 22728 checklistsJan 15-21: 3.3% of 24292 checklistsJan 22-31: 2.9% of 34122 checklistsFeb 1-7: 2.9% of 26352 checklistsFeb 8-14: 3.4% of 29663 checklistsFeb 15-21: 2.2% of 41515 checklistsFeb 22-28: 2.4% of 24318 checklistsMar 1-7: 2.5% of 23408 checklistsMar 8-14: 2.6% of 22658 checklistsMar 15-21: 2.4% of 22784 checklistsMar 22-31: 2.3% of 36034 checklistsApr 1-7: 2.1% of 28131 checklistsApr 8-14: 1.8% of 29190 checklistsApr 15-21: 1.9% of 32847 checklistsApr 22-30: 1.6% of 47966 checklistsMay 1-7: 1.2% of 37076 checklistsMay 8-14: 1.2% of 36228 checklistsMay 15-21: 1.7% of 30378 checklistsMay 22-31: 1.6% of 40237 checklistsJun 1-7: 1.8% of 27551 checklistsJun 8-14: 1.7% of 26473 checklistsJun 15-21: 1.8% of 22789 checklistsJun 22-30: 1.3% of 27615 checklistsJul 1-7: 1.7% of 20022 checklistsJul 8-14: 1.7% of 19315 checklistsJul 15-21: 1.7% of 18934 checklistsJul 22-31: 1.6% of 25600 checklistsAug 1-7: 1.5% of 17987 checklistsAug 8-14: 1.6% of 17307 checklistsAug 15-21: 1.6% of 17080 checklistsAug 22-31: 1.7% of 25844 checklistsSep 1-7: 2.4% of 20818 checklistsSep 8-14: 3.2% of 20070 checklistsSep 15-21: 3.8% of 21984 checklistsSep 22-30: 3.8% of 26979 checklistsOct 1-7: 3.8% of 22605 checklistsOct 8-14: 4.2% of 22677 checklistsOct 15-21: 4.7% of 21407 checklistsOct 22-31: 4.6% of 25927 checklistsNov 1-7: 4.5% of 18830 checklistsNov 8-14: 4.2% of 18418 checklistsNov 15-21: 4.1% of 19101 checklistsNov 22-30: 3.8% of 25709 checklistsDec 1-7: 3.8% of 18856 checklistsDec 8-14: 3.8% of 18745 checklistsDec 15-21: 3.6% of 22478 checklistsDec 22-31: 3.5% of 34796 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 Carolina 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 Carolina

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Avery CountyBest the second week of January · 68 checklists that week, 8,724 in all53%
  2. Mitchell CountyBest early September · 55 checklists that week, 2,981 in all46%
  3. Yancey CountyBest late September · 394 checklists that week, 11,714 in all34%
  4. Jackson CountyBest the second week of September · 171 checklists that week, 11,378 in all27%
  5. Swain CountyBest the second week of August · 137 checklists that week, 5,669 in all23%
  6. Warren CountyBest mid January · 30 checklists that week, 2,138 in all19%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. North Cherokee National Forest & Wildlife Management AreaMitchell County, best mid September · 20 checklists that week, 356 in all85%
  2. Balsam GapBuncombe County, best mid September · 23 checklists that week, 304 in all83%
  3. Black Mountain GapYancey County, best late August · 37 checklists that week, 494 in all83%
  4. Black Mountain Gap (Bald Knob)Buncombe County, best the second week of September · 34 checklists that week, 187 in all75%
  5. Dupont State ForestHenderson County, best late August · 24 checklists that week, 260 in all70%
  6. Blue Ridge Parkway (Devils Courthouse)Transylvania County, best late May · 21 checklists that week, 153 in all64%

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

Best time of day

In North Carolina, the Red-breasted Nuthatch is most often listed on checklists started between 7 and 9 am (3.4% of those checklists).

0%1%2%3%4%12 am: too few checklists (520) to judge1 am: too few checklists (489) to judge2 am: too few checklists (442) to judge3 am: too few checklists (544) to judge4 am: too few checklists (1621) to judge5 am: too few checklists (9671) to judge6 am: 2.3% of 50335 checklists7 am: 3.5% of 150152 checklists8 am: 3.2% of 182902 checklists9 am: 3.0% of 158933 checklists10 am: 2.8% of 128398 checklists11 am: 2.6% of 98671 checklists12 pm: 2.5% of 78640 checklists1 pm: 2.4% of 72510 checklists2 pm: 2.5% of 69179 checklists3 pm: 2.1% of 67669 checklists4 pm: 1.7% of 63964 checklists5 pm: 1.1% of 48520 checklists6 pm: 0.8% of 33196 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (19700) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (6160) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1943) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (1119) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (651) 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%3.4%3.3%2.9%
February2.9%3.4%2.2%2.4%
March2.5%2.6%2.4%2.3%
April2.1%1.8%1.9%1.6%
May1.2%1.2%1.7%1.6%
June1.8%1.7%1.8%1.3%
July1.7%1.7%1.7%1.6%
August1.5%1.6%1.6%1.7%
September2.4%3.2%3.8%3.8%
October3.8%4.2%4.7%4.6%
November4.5%4.2%4.1%3.8%
December3.8%3.8%3.6%3.5%

Neighboring states

  • South Carolina: arrives early October, 18 weeks later than North Carolina
  • Virginia: arrives early September, 14 weeks later than North Carolina
  • West Virginia: arrives early April, 6 weeks earlier than North Carolina
  • District of Columbia: arrives early September, 14 weeks later than North Carolina

Common questions

When do Red-breasted Nuthatches arrive in North Carolina?
Red-breasted Nuthatches are winter birds in North Carolina: the first arrive in mid May, they are common by early September, peak in late October (4.6% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of April.
When do Red-breasted Nuthatches leave North Carolina?
Most Red-breasted Nuthatches have left North Carolina by the second week of April, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until late April.
When is the best time to see a Red-breasted Nuthatch in North Carolina?
The Red-breasted Nuthatch is reported most often in late October, on about 4.6% of North Carolina checklists.
Where in North Carolina are Red-breasted Nuthatches seen most often?
By county, Avery County, Mitchell County, and Yancey County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Red-breasted Nuthatch (counties with at least 200 checklists).