WhenToBird

Agelaius phoeniceus · Icteridae

When Do Red-winged Blackbirds Arrive in Idaho?

Adult male Red-winged Blackbird
Photo: infiniteuniverse, CC0 1.0 via iNaturalist

Red-winged Blackbirds are in Idaho all year, but most are here in spring: numbers build from mid February, peak in late April (50% of checklists), and fall back by early July. In the quietest week (the second week of December) they are still on about 6.9% of checklists.

When to look

Numbers buildFeb 15-21mid February
PeakApr 22-30late April
Fall back byJul 1-7early July
FewestDec 8-14the second week of December

Best: late April. Here all year; numbers build from mid February and fall back by early July. Peak: on about 50% of Idaho checklists.

  1. Januncommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Junpeak season
  7. Julcommon
  8. Auguncommon
  9. Sepuncommon
  10. Octuncommon
  11. Novuncommon
  12. Decuncommon

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

0%20%40%60%Jan 1-7: 8.5% of 9357 checklistsJan 8-14: 9.8% of 6408 checklistsJan 15-21: 12% of 6358 checklistsJan 22-31: 17% of 8601 checklistsFeb 1-7: 20% of 5611 checklistsFeb 8-14: 26% of 6090 checklistsFeb 15-21: 30% of 7973 checklistsFeb 22-28: 37% of 5866 checklistsMar 1-7: 39% of 6144 checklistsMar 8-14: 41% of 6456 checklistsMar 15-21: 44% of 6786 checklistsMar 22-31: 47% of 9539 checklistsApr 1-7: 48% of 7202 checklistsApr 8-14: 47% of 7608 checklistsApr 15-21: 49% of 8069 checklistsApr 22-30: 50% of 10973 checklistsMay 1-7: 51% of 9481 checklistsMay 8-14: 50% of 11318 checklistsMay 15-21: 49% of 9141 checklistsMay 22-31: 44% of 13984 checklistsJun 1-7: 39% of 8897 checklistsJun 8-14: 37% of 8504 checklistsJun 15-21: 36% of 8078 checklistsJun 22-30: 32% of 9665 checklistsJul 1-7: 31% of 7144 checklistsJul 8-14: 27% of 6557 checklistsJul 15-21: 24% of 6430 checklistsJul 22-31: 19% of 8696 checklistsAug 1-7: 16% of 5896 checklistsAug 8-14: 15% of 5643 checklistsAug 15-21: 14% of 6151 checklistsAug 22-31: 15% of 7863 checklistsSep 1-7: 19% of 5769 checklistsSep 8-14: 18% of 5646 checklistsSep 15-21: 20% of 5460 checklistsSep 22-30: 19% of 6363 checklistsOct 1-7: 16% of 4980 checklistsOct 8-14: 16% of 5096 checklistsOct 15-21: 14% of 4878 checklistsOct 22-31: 13% of 6426 checklistsNov 1-7: 11% of 4822 checklistsNov 8-14: 10% of 4999 checklistsNov 15-21: 9.1% of 4601 checklistsNov 22-30: 9.9% of 6027 checklistsDec 1-7: 7.8% of 4180 checklistsDec 8-14: 6.8% of 4775 checklistsDec 15-21: 6.3% of 6522 checklistsDec 22-31: 8.3% 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.

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Where in Idaho

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Payette CountyBest the second week of May · 86 checklists that week, 2,860 in all86%
  2. Adams CountyBest mid March · 97 checklists that week, 5,826 in all80%
  3. Camas CountyBest early June · 104 checklists that week, 2,112 in all76%
  4. Gem CountyBest mid April · 225 checklists that week, 8,320 in all74%
  5. Canyon CountyBest early May · 720 checklists that week, 31,704 in all71%
  6. Gooding CountyBest late May · 77 checklists that week, 3,207 in all70%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Hulls Gulch Reserve (Highlands)Ada County, best late May · 21 checklists that week, 394 in all100%
  2. Eagle Island State ParkAda County, best the second week of June · 33 checklists that week, 1,077 in all100%
  3. Deer Flat National Wildlife RefugeCanyon County, best early June · 21 checklists that week, 498 in all100%
  4. Hyatt Hidden Lakes ReserveAda County, best mid May · 52 checklists that week, 2,507 in all99%

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

Best time of day

In Idaho, the Red-winged Blackbird is most often listed on checklists started between 7 and 9 am (35% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%40%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: 33% of 9122 checklists7 am: 35% of 22204 checklists8 am: 34% of 38672 checklists9 am: 31% of 38930 checklists10 am: 27% of 37338 checklists11 am: 24% of 33508 checklists12 pm: 23% of 28544 checklists1 pm: 22% of 25774 checklists2 pm: 24% of 24296 checklists3 pm: 25% of 21784 checklists4 pm: 29% of 19051 checklists5 pm: 33% of 14150 checklists6 pm: 34% of 10014 checklists7 pm: 33% 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
January8.5%9.8%12%17%
February20%26%30%37%
March39%41%44%47%
April48%47%49%50%
May51%50%49%44%
June39%37%36%32%
July31%27%24%19%
August16%15%14%15%
September19%18%20%19%
October16%16%14%13%
November11%10%9.1%9.9%
December7.8%6.8%6.3%8.3%

Neighboring states

  • Montana: arrives mid March, 4 weeks later than Idaho
  • Utah: arrives late February, 1 week later than Idaho
  • Oregon: arrives mid February, in the same week than Idaho
  • Washington: arrives mid February, in the same week than Idaho

Common questions

When do Red-winged Blackbirds arrive in Idaho?
Red-winged Blackbirds are in Idaho all year, but most are here in spring: numbers build from mid February, peak in late April (50% of checklists), and fall back by early July. In the quietest week (the second week of December) they are still on about 6.9% of checklists.
When do Red-winged Blackbirds leave Idaho?
Red-winged Blackbirds never fully leave Idaho: numbers fall back below half their usual rate by early July, but some are still reported in every week, about 6.9% of checklists at the low.
When is the best time to see a Red-winged Blackbird in Idaho?
The Red-winged Blackbird is reported most often in late April, on about 50% of Idaho checklists.
Where in Idaho are Red-winged Blackbirds seen most often?
By county, Payette County, Adams County, and Camas County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Red-winged Blackbird (counties with at least 200 checklists).