WhenToBird

Agelaius phoeniceus · Icteridae

When Do Red-winged Blackbirds Arrive in Nevada?

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

The Red-winged Blackbird is in Nevada all year. It turns up on about 29% of checklists at its peak (mid April) and on 13% in its quietest week (late August).

When to look

PresentAll year
Peak weekApr 15-21mid April
Quietest weekAug 22-31late August

Best: mid April. Here all year. Peak: on about 29% of Nevada checklists.

  1. Jancommon
  2. Febcommon
  3. Marpeak season
  4. Aprpeak season
  5. Maypeak season
  6. Juncommon
  7. Julcommon
  8. Augcommon
  9. Sepcommon
  10. Octcommon
  11. Novcommon
  12. Deccommon

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

0%10%20%30%Jan 1-7: 14% of 5121 checklistsJan 8-14: 15% of 3908 checklistsJan 15-21: 17% of 4000 checklistsJan 22-31: 16% of 4991 checklistsFeb 1-7: 17% of 3377 checklistsFeb 8-14: 16% of 3747 checklistsFeb 15-21: 18% of 4852 checklistsFeb 22-28: 23% of 3712 checklistsMar 1-7: 23% of 3745 checklistsMar 8-14: 26% of 3763 checklistsMar 15-21: 26% of 4188 checklistsMar 22-31: 27% of 6027 checklistsApr 1-7: 28% of 4679 checklistsApr 8-14: 30% of 4609 checklistsApr 15-21: 28% of 4709 checklistsApr 22-30: 29% of 6984 checklistsMay 1-7: 26% of 5702 checklistsMay 8-14: 24% of 5928 checklistsMay 15-21: 22% of 5353 checklistsMay 22-31: 20% of 7352 checklistsJun 1-7: 20% of 4360 checklistsJun 8-14: 20% of 4183 checklistsJun 15-21: 18% of 3751 checklistsJun 22-30: 19% of 4126 checklistsJul 1-7: 16% of 3231 checklistsJul 8-14: 16% of 3024 checklistsJul 15-21: 18% of 2967 checklistsJul 22-31: 16% of 4212 checklistsAug 1-7: 13% of 2828 checklistsAug 8-14: 15% of 3036 checklistsAug 15-21: 13% of 3076 checklistsAug 22-31: 14% of 4345 checklistsSep 1-7: 13% of 3369 checklistsSep 8-14: 15% of 3728 checklistsSep 15-21: 14% of 3535 checklistsSep 22-30: 18% of 5028 checklistsOct 1-7: 19% of 3976 checklistsOct 8-14: 20% of 3781 checklistsOct 15-21: 19% of 3577 checklistsOct 22-31: 19% of 4986 checklistsNov 1-7: 16% of 3592 checklistsNov 8-14: 16% of 3685 checklistsNov 15-21: 15% of 3399 checklistsNov 22-30: 13% of 4544 checklistsDec 1-7: 14% of 3162 checklistsDec 8-14: 14% of 3191 checklistsDec 15-21: 13% of 3615 checklistsDec 22-31: 14% of 5101 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 Nevada 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 Nevada

Best counties

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Carson CityBest the second week of May · 222 checklists that week, 6,992 in all54%
  2. Elko CountyBest early March · 77 checklists that week, 8,844 in all50%
  3. Churchill CountyBest early May · 144 checklists that week, 3,104 in all46%
  4. Washoe CountyBest mid April · 1339 checklists that week, 53,497 in all43%
  5. Douglas CountyBest mid April · 142 checklists that week, 7,476 in all43%
  6. Lander CountyBest mid April · 31 checklists that week, 1,413 in all39%

Best spots

Share of checklists at the peak
  1. Toiyabe National Forest (Burke Creek)Douglas County, best late June · 24 checklists that week, 441 in all100%
  2. Mccarran Ranch PreserveStorey County, best early May · 21 checklists that week, 293 in all100%
  3. Swope MsWashoe County, best late April · 54 checklists that week, 830 in all99%
  4. Swan Lake/Lemmon ValleyWashoe County, best the second week of July · 20 checklists that week, 1,492 in all98%
  5. Lockwood Open SpaceWashoe County, best late April · 22 checklists that week, 472 in all98%

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

Best time of day

In Nevada, the Red-winged Blackbird is most often listed on checklists started between 6 and 8 am (25% of those checklists).

0%10%20%30%12 am: too few checklists (114) to judge1 am: too few checklists (99) to judge2 am: too few checklists (71) to judge3 am: too few checklists (108) to judge4 am: too few checklists (459) to judge5 am: 21% of 4313 checklists6 am: 24% of 17070 checklists7 am: 26% of 27389 checklists8 am: 22% of 24858 checklists9 am: 21% of 22012 checklists10 am: 18% of 19284 checklists11 am: 16% of 15592 checklists12 pm: 15% of 12432 checklists1 pm: 14% of 11386 checklists2 pm: 14% of 11262 checklists3 pm: 16% of 10721 checklists4 pm: 16% of 9090 checklists5 pm: 19% of 6397 checklists6 pm: 18% of 5012 checklists7 pm: too few checklists (3026) to judge8 pm: too few checklists (905) to judge9 pm: too few checklists (271) to judge10 pm: too few checklists (164) to judge11 pm: too few checklists (120) 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
January14%15%17%16%
February17%16%18%23%
March23%26%26%27%
April28%30%28%29%
May26%24%22%20%
June20%20%18%19%
July16%16%18%16%
August13%15%13%14%
September13%15%14%18%
October19%20%19%19%
November16%16%15%13%
December14%14%13%14%

Neighboring states

  • California: year-round, peaks late April
  • Utah: all year, most in spring, peaks late April
  • Idaho: all year, most in spring, peaks late April
  • Arizona: year-round, peaks mid March

Common questions

When do Red-winged Blackbirds arrive in Nevada?
The Red-winged Blackbird is in Nevada all year. It turns up on about 29% of checklists at its peak (mid April) and on 13% in its quietest week (late August).
When do Red-winged Blackbirds leave Nevada?
The Red-winged Blackbird does not leave Nevada: it is reported all year, from 13% of checklists in late August to 29% in mid April.
When is the best time to see a Red-winged Blackbird in Nevada?
The Red-winged Blackbird is reported most often in mid April, on about 29% of Nevada checklists.
Where in Nevada are Red-winged Blackbirds seen most often?
By county, Carson City, Elko County, and Churchill County have the highest peak reporting rates for the Red-winged Blackbird (counties with at least 200 checklists).