WhenToBird

Loxia curvirostra · Fringillidae

When Do Red Crossbills Arrive in Utah?

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

Red Crossbills arrive in Utah in the second week of June, peak in late July (3.1% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of October.

When to look

First arrivalsJun 8-14the second week of June
Common byJun 8-14the second week of June
PeakJul 22-31late July
Most gone byOct 8-14the second week of October

Best: late July. First arrivals the second week of June; most are gone by the second week of October. Peak: on about 3.1% of Utah checklists.

  1. Janrare
  2. Febrare
  3. Marrare
  4. Aprrare
  5. Mayuncommon
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octuncommon
  11. Novuncommon
  12. Decrare

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

0%1%2%3%4%Jan 1-7: 0.3% of 10857 checklistsJan 8-14: 0.3% of 8333 checklistsJan 15-21: 0.3% of 8360 checklistsJan 22-31: 0.2% of 10516 checklistsFeb 1-7: 0.2% of 7416 checklistsFeb 8-14: 0.3% of 8082 checklistsFeb 15-21: 0.3% of 9643 checklistsFeb 22-28: 0.3% of 7960 checklistsMar 1-7: 0.3% of 7998 checklistsMar 8-14: 0.5% of 8581 checklistsMar 15-21: 0.3% of 8637 checklistsMar 22-31: 0.4% of 13006 checklistsApr 1-7: 0.3% of 10562 checklistsApr 8-14: 0.3% of 11694 checklistsApr 15-21: 0.4% of 11382 checklistsApr 22-30: 0.4% of 16626 checklistsMay 1-7: 0.4% of 13523 checklistsMay 8-14: 0.5% of 14714 checklistsMay 15-21: 0.5% of 13711 checklistsMay 22-31: 0.5% of 16546 checklistsJun 1-7: 0.9% of 10284 checklistsJun 8-14: 0.8% of 9530 checklistsJun 15-21: 1.1% of 8854 checklistsJun 22-30: 1.6% of 10566 checklistsJul 1-7: 2.1% of 7987 checklistsJul 8-14: 3.0% of 7471 checklistsJul 15-21: 3.4% of 7240 checklistsJul 22-31: 2.8% of 9329 checklistsAug 1-7: 3.1% of 6521 checklistsAug 8-14: 3.0% of 6423 checklistsAug 15-21: 2.6% of 6208 checklistsAug 22-31: 2.0% of 9089 checklistsSep 1-7: 1.5% of 7081 checklistsSep 8-14: 1.4% of 7306 checklistsSep 15-21: 1.3% of 7208 checklistsSep 22-30: 1.1% of 8876 checklistsOct 1-7: 0.9% of 7265 checklistsOct 8-14: 0.9% of 7226 checklistsOct 15-21: 1.1% of 7007 checklistsOct 22-31: 0.5% of 8443 checklistsNov 1-7: 0.6% of 6711 checklistsNov 8-14: 0.6% of 6290 checklistsNov 15-21: 0.4% of 6169 checklistsNov 22-30: 0.2% of 8228 checklistsDec 1-7: 0.1% of 6011 checklistsDec 8-14: 0.1% of 6044 checklistsDec 15-21: 0.2% of 6721 checklistsDec 22-31: 0.3% of 9982 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 Utah 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 Utah

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Daggett CountyBest early November · 24 checklists that week, 1,885 in all18%
  2. Duchesne CountyBest the second week of October · 24 checklists that week, 2,692 in all14%
  3. Garfield CountyBest late October · 178 checklists that week, 10,367 in all10%
  4. Piute CountyBest the second week of July · 21 checklists that week, 1,035 in all10%
  5. Summit CountyBest late July · 581 checklists that week, 13,829 in all8.2%
  6. Beaver CountyBest the second week of August · 97 checklists that week, 6,956 in all8.0%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Silver Lake (Giles Flat)Salt Lake County, best mid September · 30 checklists that week, 278 in all79%
  2. Lily LakesSummit County, best mid July · 24 checklists that week, 149 in all44%
  3. Trial LakeSummit County, best late July · 24 checklists that week, 138 in all43%
  4. Silver LakeSalt Lake County, best mid August · 61 checklists that week, 1,026 in all41%
  5. Emerald LakeDuchesne County, best late August · 29 checklists that week, 373 in all38%
  6. Lake SolitudeSalt Lake County, best the second week of July · 27 checklists that week, 171 in all35%

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

Best time of day

In Utah, the Red Crossbill is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (1.4% of those checklists).

0%0.5%1%1.5%2%12 am: too few checklists (242) to judge1 am: too few checklists (178) to judge2 am: too few checklists (169) to judge3 am: too few checklists (162) to judge4 am: too few checklists (284) to judge5 am: too few checklists (1984) to judge6 am: 1.9% of 11714 checklists7 am: 1.2% of 33209 checklists8 am: 1.0% of 46944 checklists9 am: 1.0% of 46290 checklists10 am: 0.9% of 43144 checklists11 am: 1.0% of 36893 checklists12 pm: 0.8% of 32758 checklists1 pm: 0.8% of 30142 checklists2 pm: 0.6% of 29414 checklists3 pm: 0.5% of 29491 checklists4 pm: 0.5% of 29154 checklists5 pm: 0.6% of 22256 checklists6 pm: 0.6% of 17383 checklists7 pm: 0.6% of 13099 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (6647) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (1753) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (599) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (307) 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
January0.3%0.3%0.3%0.2%
February0.2%0.3%0.3%0.3%
March0.3%0.5%0.3%0.4%
April0.3%0.3%0.4%0.4%
May0.4%0.5%0.5%0.5%
June0.9%0.8%1.1%1.6%
July2.1%3.0%3.4%2.8%
August3.1%3.0%2.6%2.0%
September1.5%1.4%1.3%1.1%
October0.9%0.9%1.1%0.5%
November0.6%0.6%0.4%0.2%
December0.1%0.1%0.2%0.3%

Neighboring states

  • Wyoming: arrives mid April, 7 weeks earlier than Utah
  • Nevada: arrives mid January, 19 weeks earlier than Utah
  • Colorado: arrives the second week of December, 24 weeks earlier than Utah
  • Idaho: arrives mid April, 7 weeks earlier than Utah

Common questions

When do Red Crossbills arrive in Utah?
Red Crossbills arrive in Utah in the second week of June, peak in late July (3.1% of checklists), and most are gone by the second week of October.
When do Red Crossbills leave Utah?
Most Red Crossbills have left Utah by the second week of October, when reports fall below half their usual rate.
When is the best time to see a Red Crossbill in Utah?
The Red Crossbill is reported most often in late July, on about 3.1% of Utah checklists.
Where in Utah are Red Crossbills seen most often?
By county, Daggett County, Duchesne County, and Garfield County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Red Crossbill (counties with at least 200 checklists).