WhenToBird

Melanerpes erythrocephalus · Picidae

When Do Red-headed Woodpeckers Arrive in Iowa?

Adult Red-headed Woodpecker
Photo: Owen VanAntwerpen, CC BY-SA 4.0 via iNaturalist

Red-headed Woodpeckers are in Iowa all year, but most are here in summer: numbers build from early May, peak in early September (28% of checklists), and fall back by mid September. In the quietest week (mid March) they are still on about 4.3% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildMay 1-7early May
PeakSep 1-7early September
Fall back bySep 15-21mid September
FewestMar 15-21mid March

Best: early September. Here all year; numbers build from early May and fall back by mid September. Peak: on about 28% of Iowa checklists.

  1. Januncommon
  2. Febuncommon
  3. Maruncommon
  4. Aprcommon
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julpeak season
  8. Augpeak season
  9. Seppeak season
  10. Octuncommon
  11. Novuncommon
  12. Decuncommon

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

0%10%20%30%Jan 1-7: 4.8% of 5551 checklistsJan 8-14: 5.6% of 3498 checklistsJan 15-21: 4.3% of 3803 checklistsJan 22-31: 5.9% of 4807 checklistsFeb 1-7: 6.1% of 3613 checklistsFeb 8-14: 5.0% of 4173 checklistsFeb 15-21: 4.9% of 5796 checklistsFeb 22-28: 5.3% of 4394 checklistsMar 1-7: 4.8% of 5295 checklistsMar 8-14: 4.1% of 5679 checklistsMar 15-21: 4.3% of 5418 checklistsMar 22-31: 4.4% of 8613 checklistsApr 1-7: 5.5% of 6970 checklistsApr 8-14: 6.7% of 7511 checklistsApr 15-21: 7.2% of 8321 checklistsApr 22-30: 12% of 11976 checklistsMay 1-7: 23% of 11725 checklistsMay 8-14: 27% of 12626 checklistsMay 15-21: 24% of 9372 checklistsMay 22-31: 23% of 10330 checklistsJun 1-7: 20% of 5472 checklistsJun 8-14: 20% of 4568 checklistsJun 15-21: 22% of 3870 checklistsJun 22-30: 24% of 4780 checklistsJul 1-7: 23% of 4201 checklistsJul 8-14: 22% of 3605 checklistsJul 15-21: 20% of 3621 checklistsJul 22-31: 21% of 5093 checklistsAug 1-7: 22% of 3931 checklistsAug 8-14: 24% of 3488 checklistsAug 15-21: 25% of 3802 checklistsAug 22-31: 28% of 6293 checklistsSep 1-7: 30% of 5328 checklistsSep 8-14: 27% of 4622 checklistsSep 15-21: 21% of 4367 checklistsSep 22-30: 14% of 6086 checklistsOct 1-7: 8.8% of 4708 checklistsOct 8-14: 7.8% of 4791 checklistsOct 15-21: 6.8% of 4429 checklistsOct 22-31: 6.5% of 5633 checklistsNov 1-7: 5.4% of 4090 checklistsNov 8-14: 5.6% of 3416 checklistsNov 15-21: 5.1% of 3398 checklistsNov 22-30: 7.2% of 4679 checklistsDec 1-7: 5.3% of 3442 checklistsDec 8-14: 5.6% of 3322 checklistsDec 15-21: 6.9% of 4619 checklistsDec 22-31: 6.5% of 5113 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 Iowa 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 Iowa

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Greene CountyBest mid August · 14 checklists that week, 2,565 in all78%
  2. Louisa CountyBest mid August · 18 checklists that week, 1,639 in all75%
  3. Harrison CountyBest the second week of August · 20 checklists that week, 1,977 in all70%
  4. Des Moines CountyBest late August · 65 checklists that week, 2,251 in all69%
  5. Monona CountyBest mid July · 14 checklists that week, 655 in all67%
  6. Jefferson CountyBest mid June · 90 checklists that week, 4,772 in all64%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Robison Wildlife AcresStory County, best the second week of May · 23 checklists that week, 203 in all93%
  2. Founders PondAllamakee County, best the second week of July · 21 checklists that week, 588 in all83%
  3. Scott County ParkScott County, best the second week of August · 20 checklists that week, 553 in all80%
  4. Cedar River Crossing AdditionJohnson County, best the second week of May · 29 checklists that week, 564 in all78%
  5. MacBride Recreation AreaJohnson County, best early February · 21 checklists that week, 445 in all77%
  6. Wickiup Hill Natural AreaLinn County, best early September · 24 checklists that week, 622 in all75%

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

Best time of day

In Iowa, the Red-headed Woodpecker is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (22% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%12 am: too few checklists (96) to judge1 am: too few checklists (99) to judge2 am: too few checklists (67) to judge3 am: too few checklists (82) to judge4 am: too few checklists (201) to judge5 am: too few checklists (1888) to judge6 am: 24% of 11313 checklists7 am: 21% of 25717 checklists8 am: 17% of 29755 checklists9 am: 15% of 28897 checklists10 am: 13% of 26343 checklists11 am: 12% of 21210 checklists12 pm: 12% of 17662 checklists1 pm: 11% of 16595 checklists2 pm: 11% of 16405 checklists3 pm: 10% of 17030 checklists4 pm: 9.7% of 17378 checklists5 pm: 11% of 14251 checklists6 pm: 11% of 10349 checklists7 pm: 9.8% of 6233 checklists8 pm: too few checklists (2002) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (392) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (186) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (87) 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
January4.8%5.6%4.3%5.9%
February6.1%5.0%4.9%5.3%
March4.8%4.1%4.3%4.4%
April5.5%6.7%7.2%12%
May23%27%24%23%
June20%20%22%24%
July23%22%20%21%
August22%24%25%28%
September30%27%21%14%
October8.8%7.8%6.8%6.5%
November5.4%5.6%5.1%7.2%
December5.3%5.6%6.9%6.5%

Neighboring states

  • Missouri: arrives late August, 15 weeks later than Iowa
  • Wisconsin: arrives mid April, 2 weeks earlier than Iowa
  • Minnesota: arrives early May, in the same week than Iowa
  • Illinois: arrives late April, 1 week earlier than Iowa

Common questions

When do Red-headed Woodpeckers arrive in Iowa?
Red-headed Woodpeckers are in Iowa all year, but most are here in summer: numbers build from early May, peak in early September (28% of checklists), and fall back by mid September. In the quietest week (mid March) they are still on about 4.3% of checklists.
When do Red-headed Woodpeckers leave Iowa?
Red-headed Woodpeckers never fully leave Iowa: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by mid September, but some are still reported in every week, about 4.3% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Red-headed Woodpecker in Iowa?
The Red-headed Woodpecker is reported most often in early September, on about 28% of Iowa checklists.
Where in Iowa are Red-headed Woodpeckers seen most often?
By county, Greene County, Louisa County, and Harrison County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Red-headed Woodpecker (counties with at least 200 checklists).