WhenToBird

Loxia curvirostra · Fringillidae

When Do Red Crossbills Arrive in Idaho?

Adult male Red Crossbill
Photo: Leslie Alanís, CC BY 4.0 via iNaturalist

Red Crossbills reach Idaho in mid April, are common by mid May, peak in mid July (7.7% of checklists), and most are gone by mid December.

When to look

First arrivalsApr 15-21mid April
Common byMay 15-21mid May
PeakJul 15-21mid July
Most gone byDec 15-21mid December

Best: mid July. First arrivals mid April; most are gone by mid December. Peak: on about 7.7% of Idaho checklists.

  1. Januncommon
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Maruncommon
  4. Apruncommon
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novuncommon
  12. Decuncommon

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

0%5%10%Jan 1-7: 1.9% of 9357 checklistsJan 8-14: 2.1% of 6408 checklistsJan 15-21: 1.6% of 6358 checklistsJan 22-31: 1.5% of 8601 checklistsFeb 1-7: 2.0% of 5611 checklistsFeb 8-14: 1.9% of 6090 checklistsFeb 15-21: 1.8% of 7973 checklistsFeb 22-28: 1.8% of 5866 checklistsMar 1-7: 2.2% of 6144 checklistsMar 8-14: 2.1% of 6456 checklistsMar 15-21: 2.0% of 6786 checklistsMar 22-31: 1.7% of 9539 checklistsApr 1-7: 1.8% of 7202 checklistsApr 8-14: 1.6% of 7608 checklistsApr 15-21: 1.8% of 8069 checklistsApr 22-30: 2.2% of 10973 checklistsMay 1-7: 1.9% of 9481 checklistsMay 8-14: 2.4% of 11318 checklistsMay 15-21: 2.3% of 9141 checklistsMay 22-31: 2.6% of 13984 checklistsJun 1-7: 3.0% of 8897 checklistsJun 8-14: 3.8% of 8504 checklistsJun 15-21: 5.0% of 8078 checklistsJun 22-30: 5.4% of 9665 checklistsJul 1-7: 6.2% of 7144 checklistsJul 8-14: 7.0% of 6557 checklistsJul 15-21: 8.1% of 6430 checklistsJul 22-31: 7.9% of 8696 checklistsAug 1-7: 6.9% of 5896 checklistsAug 8-14: 7.2% of 5643 checklistsAug 15-21: 6.6% of 6151 checklistsAug 22-31: 5.2% of 7863 checklistsSep 1-7: 4.8% of 5769 checklistsSep 8-14: 4.1% of 5646 checklistsSep 15-21: 3.5% of 5460 checklistsSep 22-30: 4.5% of 6363 checklistsOct 1-7: 3.8% of 4980 checklistsOct 8-14: 3.7% of 5096 checklistsOct 15-21: 3.2% of 4878 checklistsOct 22-31: 3.1% of 6426 checklistsNov 1-7: 2.8% of 4822 checklistsNov 8-14: 2.6% of 4999 checklistsNov 15-21: 2.6% of 4601 checklistsNov 22-30: 3.0% of 6027 checklistsDec 1-7: 2.9% of 4180 checklistsDec 8-14: 2.4% of 4775 checklistsDec 15-21: 2.6% of 6522 checklistsDec 22-31: 2.2% of 7792 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 Idaho 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.

Embed this map on your site

Where in Idaho

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Adams CountyBest mid July · 138 checklists that week, 5,826 in all34%
  2. Valley CountyBest late July · 364 checklists that week, 8,991 in all29%
  3. Boise CountyBest the second week of August · 169 checklists that week, 6,761 in all27%
  4. Boundary CountyBest late July · 242 checklists that week, 6,362 in all23%
  5. Lewis CountyBest late June · 26 checklists that week, 603 in all19%
  6. Idaho CountyBest the second week of August · 115 checklists that week, 3,961 in all19%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Bogus Basin State ParkBoise County, best late July · 27 checklists that week, 339 in all39%
  2. Sawtooth National ForestCassia County, best early July · 45 checklists that week, 885 in all37%
  3. Boise River Wildlife Management AreaAda County, best late October · 43 checklists that week, 733 in all37%
  4. Rollandet ParkBonneville County, best early January · 22 checklists that week, 125 in all33%
  5. Tubbs HillKootenai County, best mid June · 22 checklists that week, 364 in all25%

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

Best time of day

In Idaho, the Red Crossbill is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (7.2% of those checklists).

0%5%10%12 am: too few checklists (180) to judge1 am: too few checklists (176) to judge2 am: too few checklists (169) to judge3 am: too few checklists (164) to judge4 am: too few checklists (450) to judge5 am: too few checklists (2270) to judge6 am: 9.4% of 9122 checklists7 am: 6.3% of 22204 checklists8 am: 6.2% of 38672 checklists9 am: 3.5% of 38930 checklists10 am: 2.8% of 37338 checklists11 am: 2.6% of 33508 checklists12 pm: 2.4% of 28544 checklists1 pm: 2.3% of 25774 checklists2 pm: 1.8% of 24296 checklists3 pm: 1.8% of 21784 checklists4 pm: 1.9% of 19051 checklists5 pm: 2.0% of 14150 checklists6 pm: 1.9% of 10014 checklists7 pm: 1.7% of 7495 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (4352) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1449) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (525) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (208) 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
January1.9%2.1%1.6%1.5%
February2.0%1.9%1.8%1.8%
March2.2%2.1%2.0%1.7%
April1.8%1.6%1.8%2.2%
May1.9%2.4%2.3%2.6%
June3.0%3.8%5.0%5.4%
July6.2%7.0%8.1%7.9%
August6.9%7.2%6.6%5.2%
September4.8%4.1%3.5%4.5%
October3.8%3.7%3.2%3.1%
November2.8%2.6%2.6%3.0%
December2.9%2.4%2.6%2.2%

Neighboring states

  • Montana: arrives late June, 9 weeks later than Idaho
  • Utah: arrives the second week of June, 7 weeks later than Idaho
  • Oregon: arrives early March, 6 weeks earlier than Idaho
  • Washington: arrives late February, 7 weeks earlier than Idaho

Common questions

When do Red Crossbills arrive in Idaho?
Red Crossbills reach Idaho in mid April, are common by mid May, peak in mid July (7.7% of checklists), and most are gone by mid December.
When do Red Crossbills leave Idaho?
Most Red Crossbills have left Idaho by mid December, when reports fall below half their usual rate. Stragglers are still reported until the second week of January.
When is the best time to see a Red Crossbill in Idaho?
The Red Crossbill is reported most often in mid July, on about 7.7% of Idaho checklists.
Where in Idaho are Red Crossbills seen most often?
By county, Adams County, Valley County, and Boise County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Red Crossbill (counties with at least 200 checklists).