WhenToBird

Leuconotopicus borealis · Picidae

When Do Red-cockaded Woodpeckers Arrive in Louisiana?

Adult Red-cockaded Woodpecker
Photo: datadan, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Red-cockaded Woodpeckers reach Louisiana in early October, are common by the second week of October, peak in late May (1.2% of checklists), and most are gone by mid July.

When to look

First arrivalsOct 1-7early October
Common byOct 8-14the second week of October
PeakMay 22-31late May
Most gone byJul 15-21mid July

Best: late May. First arrivals early October; most are gone by mid July. Peak: on about 1.2% of Louisiana checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octpeak season
  11. Novcommon
  12. Deccommon

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

0%0.5%1%1.5%Jan 1-7: 0.8% of 8384 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.8% of 6265 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.7% of 6825 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.8% of 8776 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.5% of 5956 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.6% of 6291 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.5% of 8044 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.8% of 5946 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.9% of 5981 checklistsMar 8-14: 1.0% of 6307 checklistsMar 15-21: 1.0% of 6747 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.9% of 10487 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.7% of 8037 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.6% of 9577 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.8% of 11372 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.7% of 14344 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.8% of 8193 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.9% of 6823 checklistsMay 15-21: 1.2% of 4818 checklistsMay 22-31: 1.2% of 6206 checklistsJun 1-7: 1.1% of 3660 checklistsJun 8-14: 1.0% of 3455 checklistsJun 15-21: 0.6% of 3084 checklistsJun 22-30: 0.7% of 3904 checklistsJul 1-7: 0.9% of 3240 checklistsJul 8-14: 1.0% of 3235 checklistsJul 15-21: 0.6% of 3167 checklistsJul 22-31: 0.4% of 4328 checklistsAug 1-7: 0.5% of 3192 checklistsAug 8-14: 0.5% of 3394 checklistsAug 15-21: 0.5% of 3502 checklistsAug 22-31: 0.4% of 5658 checklistsSep 1-7: 0.3% of 4366 checklistsSep 8-14: 0.5% of 4648 checklistsSep 15-21: 0.5% of 4369 checklistsSep 22-30: 0.3% of 6418 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.4% of 5375 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.7% of 6213 checklistsOct 15-21: 0.6% of 5553 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.9% of 8879 checklistsNov 1-7: 1.0% of 6231 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.5% of 5011 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.6% of 4856 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.4% of 6696 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.5% of 4530 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.7% of 4883 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.6% of 5833 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.8% of 9940 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 Louisiana 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 Louisiana

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Grant ParishBest late October · 19 checklists that week, 998 in all24%
  2. Vernon ParishBest early November · 143 checklists that week, 4,048 in all23%
  3. Sabine ParishBest mid March · 15 checklists that week, 541 in all20%
  4. Natchitoches ParishBest early March · 20 checklists that week, 1,010 in all15%
  5. Winn ParishBest early June · 11 checklists that week, 348 in all6.7%
  6. St. Tammany ParishBest the second week of May · 703 checklists that week, 32,452 in all6.5%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Big Branch Marsh National Wildlife RefugeSt. Tammany Parish, best mid May · 27 checklists that week, 1,492 in all84%
  2. Big Branch Marsh National Wildlife Refuge (Bayou Cochon)St. Tammany Parish, best the second week of May · 26 checklists that week, 1,384 in all14%
  3. Kisatchie National Forest (west)Natchitoches Parish, best mid June · 22 checklists that week, 103 in all4.5%

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

Best time of day

In Louisiana, the Red-cockaded Woodpecker is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (1.0% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%1.5%12 am: too few checklists (110) to judge1 am: too few checklists (95) to judge2 am: too few checklists (78) to judge3 am: too few checklists (145) to judge4 am: too few checklists (266) to judge5 am: too few checklists (2981) to judge6 am: 1.1% of 21115 checklists7 am: 1.0% of 38843 checklists8 am: 0.9% of 36306 checklists9 am: 0.7% of 31934 checklists10 am: 0.6% of 27208 checklists11 am: 0.6% of 20733 checklists12 pm: 0.7% of 18505 checklists1 pm: 0.6% of 17383 checklists2 pm: 0.6% of 17422 checklists3 pm: 0.5% of 17005 checklists4 pm: 0.5% of 17170 checklists5 pm: 0.5% of 12536 checklists6 pm: 0.5% of 8080 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (3798) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (676) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (311) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (206) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (93) 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
January0.8%0.8%0.7%0.8%
February0.5%0.6%0.5%0.8%
March0.9%1.0%1.0%0.9%
April0.7%0.6%0.8%0.7%
May0.8%0.9%1.2%1.2%
June1.1%1.0%0.6%0.7%
July0.9%1.0%0.6%0.4%
August0.5%0.5%0.5%0.4%
September0.3%0.5%0.5%0.3%
October0.4%0.7%0.6%0.9%
November1.0%0.5%0.6%0.4%
December0.5%0.7%0.6%0.8%

Common questions

When do Red-cockaded Woodpeckers arrive in Louisiana?
Red-cockaded Woodpeckers reach Louisiana in early October, are common by the second week of October, peak in late May (1.2% of checklists), and most are gone by mid July.
When do Red-cockaded Woodpeckers leave Louisiana?
Most Red-cockaded Woodpeckers have left Louisiana by mid July, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until mid August.
When is the best time to see a Red-cockaded Woodpecker in Louisiana?
The Red-cockaded Woodpecker is reported most often in late May, on about 1.2% of Louisiana checklists.
Where in Louisiana are Red-cockaded Woodpeckers seen most often?
By county, Grant Parish, Vernon Parish, and Sabine Parish have the highest peak reporting rates for the Red-cockaded Woodpecker (counties with at least 200 checklists).